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Thank you to all of you for your comments, suggestions (especially regarding attitude), and explanations. Although I am, along with Snakebite one of the oldest people on this thread, I feel that I am the most fortunate in light of the fact that I am just relatively recently anointed with MDs.
I live in Canada, and cannot compare my blood measurements to the US, sincewe are in Celsius (and I can’t figure it out). But my white and red cells are off. And because of my age, the hematologist has informed me that I should be able to live on for a quite a while, as long as I stay away from a major infection. If not, all bets are off.
Being anemic and neutropenic is an issue, but there is no pain. And I can take a nap, be careful, wear masks in indoor public spaces (Covid is still with us), and enjoy life.
As I had mentioned earlier, I am ready to go on living with how I stand, but am getting pressure from family to get a second opinion.
But the literature on MDS, in some respect, does not give many alternatives for treatment…
Yet who knows, maybe I will also be able to walk two swift “kilometres” soon. 😊
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Hi @jps01, from my experience with leukemia and hundreds of blood tests over the past 4 years, all of my tests results are presented in the metric system. It’s a universally accepted standard for healthcare world wide. So your numbers from Canada should parallel those in the US, if that helps you out.
I’m happy to hear you’re in the low risk MDS group for progression. Deciding to take a treatment at this point is a personal decision. The watch-and-wait (or active surveillance) approach lets you avoid therapy's side effects until you need treatment. Treating MDS during this early stage hasn’t proved helpful according the the Leukemia & lymphoma society;
https://www.lls.org/myelodysplastic-syndromes/treatment/watch-and-wait
I did find a list of potential treatments for MDS should you be interested in the future:
Less aggressive treatments are:
Azacitidine (Vidaza)
Decitabine (Dacogen)
Decitabine and cedazuridine (Inqovi)
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Vidaza
https://news.cancerconnect.com/myelodysplastic-syndrome/vidaza-improves-survival-in-myelodysplastic-syndromes#:~:text=Vidaza%20was%20the%20first%20agent%20approved%20for%20the,effects%20on%20survival%20have%20not%20been%20clearly%20established.
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INQOVI https://www.inqovi.com/?msclkid=782b208c32841e96dd324473bf27d947&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Patient%20-%20Unbranded%20-%20Treatment&utm_term=how%20to%20treat%20myelodysplastic%20syndrome&utm_content=Treatment%20-%20Myelo
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This article explains MDS and lists a number of potential treatments
https://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/myelodysplastic-syndromes-mds/types-treatment
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Reblozyl to treat anemia in MDS https://www.curetoday.com/view/fda-approves-reblozyl-to-treat-anemia-in-mds-subset
I love your attitude and honestly that’s the best way to live life! Enjoy every day while still taking those much needed precautions to avoid illness. I’m right there with you but I don’t let a compromised immune system stop me from enjoying my second chance with life. ☺️