Hi Shimauta and welcome to our group. It is great that you love being here, though I am sure the reason you came here doesn't make you very happy. I am very glad that treatment was a success for you, that you are feeling well, and returned to work. You are truly blessed and I wish you remission that lasts forever.

Yes, chemo regimen for AML is very tough and can cause pretty much any side effect/damage. But at least it took care of your main concern which was blood cancer. I am sure you will be able to control hyperinsulinemia.

How often do you have your blood checked? Do you have bone marrow biopsy done on a regular basis? Blessings and best wishes for you too.

Tanya

Welcome to the site... :). As Tashka says treatment for AML can cause all kinds of side effects.

There is a wonderful group of people here very willing to help :)

Tashka youre right... I dont like the reason ... but Im so happy to be alive... and feel I have to fight to keep my spirit up. So, thanks so much for you and Dppmeeks welcoming.
I live in Central America. I could have a good and confortable treatment because I have a private med insurance... othewise matters could be different. My follow up consists on just a blood test every other month. Firts it was every month, now every other month. No bone marrow biopsy done... is it part of the normal protocol? If so I might talk to my doctor. I came from Spain last october, and got plenty of tests: FISH, MRD (minimal residual desease or something like that), bone marrow, analisys of cromosoms, I dont know how to write the names of the tests because they are in catalan language. They are all OK. Doctors also told me all I need is a blood test.... but Im scared ! I dont want to find out my blood cells are not ok again when it is too late... so, please, if you have a different follow up protocol, Id like to know.

Hi, Shimauta,
i find we are very similar--diagnosed at around the same time and finished the treatment at around the same time. But i haven't gone back to job.
my oncologist now asks me to do a bloodtest every month and a BMB every three month and a MRD every half year. So far, these results have been fine.---though the white cell numbers have ups and downs due to some cold.
Chemos have some side effects, including the harm to your liver. i don't know whether you gained weight during your treatment, if yes, i heard that extra fat in your belly might cause diabetes.So, i suggest you do some exercises. To better protect your liver, you can lie flat on the bed and message your sides. i do this almost every day. you can try---at least, it does no harm.
i now walk for 5days a week, and find myself gaining some strength. you can exercise within your limit.
this is what i can sy. hope it helps.
Donna

Shimauta, messaging your sides is to help your liver.it is not about your diabetes.
i didn't make it clear, sorry.

Donna

Shimauta,

Some doctors in the US do scheduled BMBs but many don't. It varies. Usually blood test shows the way things are pretty clearly and if there is anything wrong the doctor can always order BMB. Blood test is quite enough. But I would recommend you to do blood tests every month not every other month. This is a standard practice. You don't want to miss a relapse, and often when it happens the person feels OK initially. There may be just a slight change in the blood test.

Can you tell me how FISH and MRD were done? I thought these are the tests done on the bone marrow but I might be wrong.

thanks Donna, I will do that with my liver, my doc told that glucose problems might be due to liver not working well, not only excess insuline on blood, so it sounds good. I got 20 pounds during chemo, I was hungry all the time... first I ate and didnt got weight, so.... I started eating sweet things.... and all of a sudden I started getting fat, but it was around chemo no. 4, not before.
I was asking my doctor to have MRD on regular basis, but it seems its not a usual procedure for him, though he did like the idea. The problem is that I have to find a place in the USA to have this tests without insurance. My insurance is only for Central AMerica. If you can suggest hospital or medical centers for MRD Id appreciate... Im not rich but my health is worth. Going back to Spain is out of the question; though I dont pay anything (Im spaniard citizen), plane tickets and staying there is soooo expensive.... Spain will be a choice only for a BMT if I ever need it (hope not).
Tanya, in Spain I had so many tests, and I cant say if they were done from blood or bone marrow. There were blood samples as well as bone marrow, but they take it from the chest, not from the hip. Very simple procedure though I was a bit scared. Didnt hurt, but Im so used to my oncologist who is so delicate with bone marrow that I never felt any pain at all with him

So, please, if you can suggest a medical center for future MRD Id appreciate it a lot. Not yet, since my last MRD was in october, but Id propose another one by april or may to my doc.

Living in Central America is so difficult when you are sick. Even if you can afford it, no state-of-the-art tests and technology are availabe... so, Id be really grateful if you can give any advice on medical center for tests.

Blessings for all of you !

Shimauta,
sorry i can't suggest a medical center for MRD, you know, i am in China. :). i am told that MRD change can be the first signs for a relapse, ( followed by bone marrow, and then blood), so observing MRD is quite meaningful. The problem, however, is the current methods of observing MRD may not be so reliable. as far as i know, there are two ways to know your MRD, FISH and PCR. But neither is very satisfactory. I guess that's why many oncologists don't recommend one.
Like you, i never felt full and ate a lot, but didn;t gain any weight. Then, i gained 20 pounds during my round 4 chemo. I never get rid of the extra weight. being worried about fat associated problems, i am now doing exercises. i only lose 2 pounds 7 months post chemo.
Tashka, you are right:doctors get your bone marrow to measure your MRD.
Donna

Can you please explain how MRD (minimal residual disease) test is done?

Not sure that MRD is one test: think is a group of tests based on molecular biology and analysis of cromosomas and their normality.

Shimauta,

Bienvenido a nuestro sitio web. Su experiencia ser muy til a los dems y me alegro de que usted va a compartir sus ideas con nosotros.

I am so glad you joined our group. You sound as if you are doing very very well. I had to have a transplant, but I have survived 15 months and feel terrific. I turn 60 next week (there was a point when I doubted I would see that horribly aged milestone).

If you have hypoglycemia, then you do not have diabetes, by definition. Too much insulin can be a problem, if that is really the case. Generally hypoglycemia is treated with a low concentrated sweet diet. Sweets cause an abnormal release of insulin in you and you become low in glucose. If the rest of your LFTs are normal, then I doubt your liver has anything to do with this. Glucagon is made in the pancreas and increases glucose level. You may be referring to glycogen, which is stored in the liver and broken down to produce glucose. Our glycogen stores are very limited and so if you are missing meals (fasting) you will deplete your liver glycogen (there is also some in the muscle). You need to definitely do a glucose tolerance test to see if you bottom out after the insulin is released in response to the sugar, or have a fasting glucose level done, to see if it is abnormally low. Chances are things are OK. Just concentrate on eating a healthful diet for now and let your doctor do whatever tests are necessary.

Glad you have joined.

Xuelan... so happy to know about your BMT doing great after all the bad times... I know what it means to "see it come close"... I had something called (like) colitis pseudomembranous or so, with a toxic megacolon (I think not a complete one but was on the way). My belly grew so much that I seem to be 9 months pregnant.
Now I feel tired most of the time. Since chemo was much, much easier than we all (doctor included) though it might be, getting back to normal life has not... Im very active and is hard to understand my body now.
I had the glucose-tolerance test. Wow... no curve at all. Almost a flat line. My marks on glucose were 92 before drinking that horrible stuff, then 84 one hour later, then 87, then 91, and finally 53. Now I have to measure insuline by having a similar test but only 2 blood samples.
Thanks for explaining about glycogen and glucagon... not so strong on that. Im usually so tired, that the only energy I have is to go to work and come back. Have to be in bed or at least laying flat an 7 pm. or I wont be up at 6:30 to go to the office...
Well, thanks so much.....

Shimauta,

Are you Japanese? It is strange to see a name like that from central America.

In any event, your glucose tolerance curve is rather abnormal. You never get a spike in glucose. It just eventually goes below the normal range. It is important to get the issue resolved. Sometimes, people can do that if they are really undernourished and have no glycogen stores, but that would be very very unusual in your instance. There are also tumors of the pancreatic islets that make too much insulin. They are unusual too. The key thing to feel better is your diet. For example, when you eat carbohydrates, have some fat with them, like olive oil. Fats delay the emptying of the stomach, so that you will not have a very rapid carbohydrate breakdown and absorption by the duodenum (first part of the small intestine). You want to try to keep your serum glucose as stable as possible. If you do not eat frequently enough (like at work), that can make you drop your glucose. A number like 53 is very low, unless a person is actually pregnant, where the glucose range can be below the 70-99 that is normal.

Your liver tests sound fine. I would have high protein and low carbohydrate snacks (like cheese) and only have COMPLEX carbohydrates ---never a candy bar or sweetened drink. That will have an effect like the GTT. I also think that you should get yourself a glucose monitoring device (they are cheap, and don't really hurt anymore) and check your random glucose levels throughout the day, especialmente si usted se siente dbil y por la maana antes de comer.

Keep me posted and feel free to ask questions. Feel well.

We are all grateful for the Lord's work.

Cliff

Hi Cliff !
No, Im not japanese :) but I stayed in Okinawa studying in 2007 and fell deeply in love with Japan, Okinawa and its people.... "Shimauta" is a very popular song in Okinawa. You can find it in YouTube. When we were in japanese classes, we used to sing this song, all together... and we all became children again. It makes me happy to remember this time of my life.
Yes, my glucose test is rather strange. I think this condition comes from before cancer. And my concern is if chemo made it worse. I have an appointment at January 4th with the endocrinology doctor. We will see what he says. Its so strange, because I am overweighted. Im already on a diet, and yes, trying to take snacks at work no matter what. After cancer, my life and my health becomes FIRST than anything. And I mean anything for sure. Thanks God my husband does shopping and he buys healthy food for me, though sometimes vegetables have to be bought twice a week and thats a problem. I try to keep my strengh to work and nothing else.
Its so nice to have a doctor with us. Thanks so much for your advice. This weekend Im supponsed to measure my insulin.

Have a good day !

Tashka,
i measured my MRD twice. doctors take my bone marrow and then send the sample to a lab. MY understanding is , MRD is to detect how many leukemia cells remain in your marrow,( by that, the doctors can tell the possibility of a relapse. the doctors need to know the certain leukemia markers in your body, so it is best that you had FISH when you first diagnosed, and then they can measure the remaining leukemia cells accordingly.
i am not a professional. You can ask Cliff or your doctors for more detailed and accurate explanation.