Re: Irregular periods-men, don't bother reading

[Guest guest]

Hi Ladies,

Lynn, my story is similar to yours. Prior to diagnosis, my periods

were getting much lighter and I noticed that the colour had even

changed. It was more " white " than red. I suspect this was because

of the CML.

After I started Gleevec, they were very heavy and very red which I

suppose is what they should have been all along but I had the CML

for so long before, that I had forgotten what " normal " was.

After about a year my cycle normalized (to the 28 day cycle, as

opposed to the 21 day cycle that had started with Gleevec) and since

then, I seem to alternate between a heavy cycle and a light cycle,

much like you Lynn.

By fluke, I found out last summer that I have fibroids now which

probably influence my cycle in a benign way (they did an ultrasound

to look at my spleen, kidneys and gallbladder but noticed the

fibroids in the process).

No one has ever suggested a hysterectomy to me and frankly, I would

never consider it myself as long as there was nothing seriously

wrong with my uterus. There are consequences from having a

hysterectomy so the decision shouldn't be taken lightly and I

suspect you'd have a hard time finding a doctor willing to operate

for no other reason than your period has become a nuisance or

unpredictable. If you're hemorrhaging and passing out from the loss

of blood, then that's obviously another story.

Some people have found sucess with taking ferrous gluconate (iron)

to boost the hemaglobin that we lose every month so if you're at all

anemic, you may want to ask your doctor about that.

Take care,

Tracey

dx Jan 2002