--- In [email protected], <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > A short time later, while laying on a gurney in the hallway, I got the bad > news that my White Blood Cell count was very high, and that it indicated I > had Leukemia. My WBC count at that time was 386,000. (I still don't know > what the units of that measurement are - I guess it means that many white > blood cells in some volume of blood) They also told me that I would be > admitted to the hospital - so they wheeled me into the actual Emergency Room > and started me on an I.V. antibiotic - this must have been better medicine > than the previous antibiotics I had been prescribed by my regular doctor, > because I started feeling better pretty soon. By Saturday during the day, I > actually felt better than I had in a couple of weeks. > > I was in the hospital over the weekend, only getting more of the antibiotic > (I think it was called Levoquin) - because the oncologist at the hospital > would not be there to see me until Monday. By then, after many more blood > tests, the oncologist made a preliminary diagnosis that I had CML. But he > ordered a bone marrow biopsy to be sure. I had the procedure to remove a > bone marrow sample on Tuesday morning, and was released from the hospital > the next day. The oncologist had told me that he would prescribe a new drug > for me - called Gleevec. _____ > The real surprise, though, for both me and the doctor was my WBC count. It > was down to 1.4. He seemed a little bit surprised that it was so low, and > of course told me to temporarily discontinue taking the Gleevec. My other > counts - RBC and platelets were good, though. But I will go back
> Pat Sharp > Perris, California ________________ Hi Pat, Where is Perris, Calif? I used to live in Santa Barbara, also in Long Beach.....but now I am in Oregon. Mainly I was wondering if you were anywhere near a larger cancer center where you might see a cml specialist. Also, this list is almost defunct....not much posting. So, I suppose you should switch to the other List and maybe Rob will tell you how to do that, unless your message is automatically going there also??? Sorry you had such a tough time getting diagnosed.....and that no one did a simple blood test earlier. Other do have similar stories but a simple blood test would have given them answers when you first got sick. Normal white count is 5-10,000..........so your count was pretty high and causing the problems. Some doctors would have given you another drug, hydrea, first to get your white count down. But it is typical with Gleevec (also referred to as IM) to get back to normal blood counts in 4-8 weeks. You should not be off IM long....it would be preferable to be on the lower starting dose of 400mg than to be off the drug. It is OK if the white count drops to 2-4.......what you need for protection against infections, etc. is an absolute neutrophil count of 1.0. Neutrophils are a certain % of your total white count, and you might see what % it is on your blood test. I will tell you that when you had a white count of 167,000....most specialist would not let you be on your own with regular blood tests for a month (I think you wrote this). I would ask your oncologist how many patients he has on Gleevec....if his experience is limited, you might suggest that he gets a 2nd opinion on decisions. You have had a good response to Gleevec, which is good. You don't mention is your platelets were in the normal range at diagnosis, or if they were also elevated. PS I think your regular physician did a poor job (not even getting a blood test) even if it was flu season! He should be thinking twice about how he deals with ill people from now on. Nancy C. on Gleevec since 2-2000, so lots of experience ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Give the gift of life to a sick child. Support St. Jude Children's Research Hospital's 'Thanks & Giving.' http://us.click.yahoo.com/3iazvD/6WnJAA/xGEGAA/8zSolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> New! Sign up for local CML support group meetings in your local community at http://cml.meetup.com Apply for Commercial Real Estate loans online and submit your deal to dozens of hungry lenders in just minutes. Loan programs for all types of business and commercial real estate. Apply anytime at http://realestatezoo.com CML (Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia Support List) --------------------------------- Part Of CMLHope.Com An International Community Of CML Patients For more information: http://cmlhope.com Post Message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change To No Mail/Web: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change To Digest: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change To Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] List Help: [EMAIL PROTECTED] CML Group Web Site http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CML Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CML/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
