I live in Greenville SC while it's a drive, I can recommend Dr William Curran from the Lung Center of Patewood The general number is 864 464 4200It is not easy to find a specialist who knows about and has treated MACI have also been seen by Dr Patrick Flume at MUSC. MUSC had a MAC clinic. He is great however I have chosen to stay with Dr Curran in Greenville as travel to CharlestonIs too difficult. We also have a MAC support in Greenville SC. I believe we will be having a meeting in Januarywe are a group of 30 to 40 members from all over the area. It's very helpful to meet with others who are sharing your journey. I hope this is helpful and wish both you and your wife succes as you move forward.
Best Lynn

Lynn, thank you for jumping in! If Bruce and his wife cannot find a good doctor in North Carolina .. who knows .. they may try your recommendation .. I just know every little bit helps in the beginning. It certainly is tough with both being diagnosed. Again, thank you. Hugs to you! Katherine

Hi Bruce,
I go to a clinic at UNC in Chapel Hill called the UNC Center for Bronchiectasis Care. They treat Bronchiectasis and any NTM's such as MAC. I've only been there twice but I'm very happy with the care I'm getting. I went to Duke before that but wasn't comfortable with the treatment I was getting. I don't know what kind of doctor you are seeing but it should be an infectious disease specialist and pulmonologist. Everybody is at different stages with the disease so as Katherine has said you have to do your homework to decide whether you feel comfortable with what your doctor is suggesting for treatment. Not every Dr. has a lot of knowledge about MAC. I think some of the people on this forum know more than some of the Dr's I've seen! I appear to have a mild case of MAC and Bronchiectasis so at this stage I'm just being watched and I'm doing lung clearance exercises to breakup and get out some of the MAC. I see my Dr every 3 months and have a lung function test at each appt. If my symptoms change - I will have to go on to plan B. But, so far so good. Do lots of research, find a Dr. you trust that has dealt with this a lot and that will monitor you closely. We're all here to answer any questions or offer advice. How awful that both of you have it. I wonder how often that happens. Good luck. I hope you get good news at your appt. Janet

Hi Janet! You are indeed a sweetie! I KNEW someone had this good experience .. but as I say "I can't always remember what I had for lunch yesterday!" .. so I can't always remember all the details .. just knew it was out there on our Forum! Thank you so much for jumping in with help! Hugs to you! Katherine

I'm at the same stage as you are Janet. I have felt better since I had my A/C unit with ducts replaced and I stay away from dust and chemicals which cause me to go into coughing fits. May have to get a cleaning lady! It's worth it. My pulmonologist is waiting until a cscan shows that he will be definitely able to get a sample of my bacteria. I have nodes in my upper right lode that are hard to reach apparently and I can not give a sputum sample. So, I am feeling someone stronger and the season - whatever religion you are - brings joy to my soul as I hope it does for you. Wishing you the best. Kathryn

Hi Janet, I was just thinking. You spoke of "doing your lung clearance exercises". Well, an interesting side effect has happened for me in this initial trial use of the Expand-A-Lung Breathing Fitness Exerciser http://www.expand-a-lung.com
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JWTRA5I/ref=ox_sc_act_title_12?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A35MWDCY6SWWSF
that I mentioned in another post. For my .. whatever my lung condition is .. I try to "breathe out" .. just as long as I can. This has resulted in me really coughing .. AND bring up sputum! ie "lung clearance"! An interesting side effect! It is kind of an unintended .. interesting side effect that certainly the athletes who use this little device to improve their lung capacity sure don't have! But I thought I'd mention it in case anyone else wants to give it a try .. for $30 bucks maybe worth a try. Since you increase the pressure as your lung capacity gets better .. I would assume the "lung clearance" might also continue? Don't know yet .. have not increased the pressure yet! Just thought I'd give a heads up! Hugs! Katherine

Thanks Katherine! Sounds like another one to try. That's exactly what I'm aiming for - cough up all that crud! And if I can up my lung capacity at the same time that will be a bonus. 🙂 We learn so much from you!! Thx, Janet

Kathryn, I've found that any dust flying around or even working outside blowing out the leaves or things like that affects me, too. I just bought electrostatic filters. They are suppose to reduce the amount of dust. There are even stronger filters but they can be hard on your HVAC system. That's what my HVAC guy told me. I don't cough anything up - never have. They had to do a bronchoscopy to get a sample. It's so nice to hear that that this time of year brings you such joy. It certainly made me feel great just reading it! Amazing what a smile can do to brighten your day. Such a simple thing but so powerful. Thanks for giving me that! Janet

.. no promises Janet! I'm still experimenting .. but for $30 it is worth a try! Let us know what the device does for you .. I'll also post what it does for me in a couple of months! But I thought I'd let you at least know about this aspect. Hugs! Katherine

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