What is Acute Myelogenous Leukemia AML
Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), also known as acute myeloid leukemia, is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells. The median age of patients with AML is 70; it is rare among ...
Join Now
|
Questions for long-term survivors
|
Watch this |
| View More Posts Ignore |
I feel strangely guilty to be posting a question for fellow-survivors about a minor complaint, amid all the posts of those who are still struggling with the illness day to day. I wish you all the best...
I was diagnosed in 1993, when I was 26, and had 3 rounds of induction chemo before going into remission the next year. I had many side-effects from treatment, and also a number of so-called "opportunistic infections" that have been the source of lingering problems. My question for other survivors who had a lot of chemo, is this: Have you had any long-term problems with memory and clear thinking? I've heard alot of people experience a fuzzy-headedness thats been called "chemo-brain", but its usually not long-term. The other question I have relates to your resistance to illness. I seem to get sick alot more now. I've considered that it could be I've just turned into a hypochondriac, but its more than that. I genuinely get colds and flus more often than I used to, and when I do it seems to last longer. Admittedly, I never was a person with a strong constitution - I got sick often when I was a kid. But it just seems like I have a harder time fighting off any illness or healing from injuries. My family doctor assured me that my immune system shouldn't be compromised all these years later. My wife was there to hear it, so now she loses patience with my endless illnesses, and feels that I bring it on with my mindset. I'd like to hear from others about their experiences... Posted on 03/13/09, 12:03 am |
| 2 Replies | Add Your Reply |
| View More Posts Ignore |
Well don't feel guilty! BLESS YOU for posting :P I'm not a long-time survivor, still dealing with GvH from my bone marrow transplant last July- so I'm still a baby in terms of years of survivorship- however... When it comes to memory.. Mine is the shits. They keep telling me it will get better...... but it hasn't yet.. Same with my ability to multitask- it's gone. I now HAVE to write down a list of things to do and follow the list or I will not remember. I cannot focus on more than one thing at a time- this also goes for my eyes. I have to look specifically at something in order to focus on it- especially if it's words-- and then my brain has to engage for me to understand what I'm reading or listening to otherwise I get incredibly confused.
When it comes to getting sick... I've always had a strong constitution so even when I do get sick I am one of those people who kind of shrugs it off to the frustration of my husband, family, and medical care team. I have been told though that what you are dealing with is normal as far as getting sick more often. Out of curiosity... when was your last BMA? Because I'm still so new tentatively out, whenever I am feeling sick all the time my first thought always goes to "is it back?" because that was the first symptom that I had before diagnosis. Just being sick seemingly all the time. Man my mind is crap- I've had to reread not only your question but my response like 3 times now. *sighs* 
|
|
|
|
||
| View More Posts Ignore |
Well, number of years not-withstanding, it seems to me that you have already surpassed me in the category of survivorship, since you've faced (and survived) some things I never did: a bone marrow transplant and graft vs host. From what I learned about transplants when they were still considering that as an option for me, thats a tough process to say the least...and I know the thought of GvH scared the willies out of me, to be honest! I hope thats going okay for you?
Everything you described about memory and multi-tasking is OH so familiar. As is that sort of "paranoid" feeling that a relapse is looming, and each odd symptom might be the first foreshadowing of its approach. I don't know if you ever read the post I wrote (somewhere on this site) where I talked about the feeling that my remission was like a "reprieve" and that I was waiting for the proverbial "other shoe to drop"...that I was living on "borrowed time". That was one of the slowest changes, but it did come with time. I eventually got over those feelings, and began to accept that I was really going to live. Started making plans farther into the future than one week. :) And accepting that every cold wasn't the end of me. I think part of the reason that was hard for me at first was that in much the way you describe, the symptoms I had before diagnosis mimiced the flu. Except that no flu had ever left me that tired and achy...and there was the weird matter of the huge bruises I would get from the slightest bump... Best of luck, and take care.
|
|
|
|
||
| Add Your Reply |
