[David M]

Hello All,

Each year about this time, I try to post an update of my "progress" -- well, as long as the Lord blesses me with an additional year!

2024 has been another pretty stable year as far as the blood-counts go, which is a great blessing.

Healthwise, I'm feeling pretty good. During the past year, I've had Covid-19, and I've had various colds and things -- but nothing too bad. I recovered much like any person would who had more blood contents, so not many worries there overall.

I have noticed that my stamina seems to (once again) be dropping a bit. Sure, I'm a year older (I crossed the 60-threshold during this year), but this is more than just getting a little older. I'm in pretty decent shape physically -- but I tire out upon exertion very quickly -- very frustrating!

Below are counts from my last 4 CBCs (11/7/23, 5/6/24, 7/31/24, 8/13/24):
RBC:........2.78....2.69....2.8....2.79
WBC:.......3.7........3.5....4.6....3.4
Lymph #:..1.7......1.7....1.5....1.38
Lymph %:..46.2....48.1.....32.5....40.8
Neut #:....1.17....1.03....1.8....1.36
Neut %:...31.7....29.9.....40.1....40.3
Hgb:........10.1....9.8....10.0....10.1
HCT:........30.6....28.6....30.1....31.0
Platelet:...72.......57......78.... 80

Interestingly, I just met with my hematologist at Vanderbilt (I go there once each year), and he -- for really the first time -- suggested the idea that Promacta is out there as an option for me (even now) if I wanted to go that route. There are still concerns about side effects involving the liver, but he spoke as if those are almost always manageable. He still very conservatively suggested I not go with Promacta at this point -- but he made it clear that it is a pretty good option that has emerged. It is a risk vs. reward thing.

While I am struggling some with stamina issues, would Promacta make me feel that much different -- i.e. boosting my HGB from something like 9.5-10.0 to something like 14.0 (perhaps)? I wonder... would it be worth it? Personally, I kind of think it would be worth it... but I'm not really sure. I'm also not sure if insurance would cover it? Isn't it really expensive? Maybe some of you reading this have some light you can shed here on effectiveness and cost.

So, overall, things are rocking along much as they have been... which is a good thing. I will ponder the Promacta idea... and look into it some more. Thanks for "listening," and feel free to check in with me anytime!

Until next time,
David M