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Matthew42,
I don't know why he is so adamant about the Exjade, the same as I am not sure why he is so adamant about the prednisone, about the Aranesp, about the antimicrobial prophylaxis, about his strict 6 month timeline.
All of these things together make me feel that he is following most all of the right treatments but isn't familiar with the particular nuances of aplastic anemia vs other blood disorders.
I don't know how to phrase this sort of thing of course. If you ask why the Exjade, then obviously the answer is because of iron overload. There isn't much nuance in it. Trying to get the kind of information out of him that your mother gets from her hematologist is like trying to get blood from a stone, sort of. He doesn't offer up much unless you really know how to ask. He never even mentioned the ANC improvements ever until I asked about it.
I am no doctor of course but from what I have been able to read it would be far better to wait to address the iron overload until my mother's blood counts are more stable. Especially since some of the side effects of Exjade are lowering of blood counts - so wouldn't that mean giving it might cause the need for even more transfusions? Which might exacerbate the iron overload?
Of course, it's not so easy to get a second opinion, hence why I was asking if it makes sense to contact the hematology division of the med school/center.
Hoping for health and happiness to you and your mother as well!
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