Theresa, Hello, I cannot provide much information as to when treatment actually starts. I'm about your age and was diagnosed in June 2019 and am on watch and wait. My disease progression sounds similar to yours. In discussions with my Hematologist, a treatment plan should wait until symptoms worsen which affect quality of life. Could be things like Anemia, bleeding, night sweats, pain, weight loss, etc. Even an overly enlarged spleen can become a health issue. The doctor did comment that treatment is potentially around the 5 year point following diagnosis. But everybody is different as to the timing of all this. I do have some of those mentioned symptoms, but quite mild at this point.
I have my regular 6 month appointment in April for a CT and labs. Plus they will do another bone marrow biopsy and additional labs to establish a new baseline and compare to the 2019 tests/diagnosis. So in a month I'll be a bit more informed.
My SMZL appointments are at Mayo in Rochester and am pleased with their care . In 2019 I did consult with another oncology group and they agreed with the Mayo diagnosis and to watch and wait..
Am wishing you the best and please keep us updated. Thanks