I recently posted an article on aplastic anemia in response to another post that I’d read.
I felt compelled to mention that a dear friend of mine was diagnosed with a moderate to severe case of it.
But alas, I didn’t have time to expand on the background. I’d like to address that now after watching an informative video by the National Institutes of Health. They interviewed Dr. Neal Young, an expert in aplastic anemia.
I was really surprised to learn that the standard diagnostic test for the condition is a bone marrow biopsy. If you don’t know, they’re extremely painful.
As I’d mentioned, my friend, who was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, was treated with methotrexate by her rheumatologist.
My friend later acquired aplastic anemia.
I realize it’s true that methotrexate might be tolerable for some people. But it’s widely known to have significant, A.K.A. SEVERE, side effects such as:
- liver damage
- heart damage,
- and kidney damage
—just to name a few.
The problem (as my friend relayed to me) occurred because the rheumatologist did not monitor her blood carefully. So when her white and red blood cell counts began to drop over four months, no one alerted her. She did not know that this drug was toxic to her body until it was too late.
But rather than sit helplessly in her rocking chair, feeling angry at her doctor and the world, my friend decided to take control!
She had been very active before her diagnosis of aplastic anemia. She swam three days a week and walked daily for one hour. Overall, she felt okay as long as she napped every morning and afternoon. But slowly she realized something was wrong. She started to feel tired and out of breath. That got her to question her doctor.
To make a long story short, she looked up leading experts in the condition and I think she eventually met with Dr. Young at the NIH. But she didn’t stop there! From discussions with one expert to another, she wound up at Johns Hopkins and joined a clinical trial. Her body is responding favorably.
After talking with her team of specialists, she continues to exercise, gets plenty of rest and follows a diet that is low in iron.
Is she cured? No.
Are her platelets, red and white blood cells back to normal? Not yet. Maybe never.
But what’s really hopeful is that her counts have risen and her iron levels have diminished to a normal range. She hasn’t had a blood transfusion in more than a year! Before, she was dependent upon them every month. She says she feels pretty darn good and exercises more than I do!
I don’t know Dr. Neal Young, and I’ve never visited NIH. But I want to say how grateful I am for your tireless work and research efforts! Your work towards more effective treatments, maybe even a cure, is a blessing!
