(tracy) any other kineret users have issues w/this?

[Guest guest]

Actually, my doc told me my wbc because I asked him what it was.  And my white

count has been as high as 41,000 but stays, normally, around 13,000 to 17,000. 

Since taking the Kineret, it has gone down and ONLY since taking kineret.  I

know that a normal wbc is somewhere between 4.5 and 10.5 ( or maybe it's

12.5?).  At any rate, I am not panicking, just curious b/c this is not

typical.  I am inclined to believe that the Kineret is doing it's job.  It's

just that, for so long, my wbc has been elevated.  Chronically.  They checked

me for all infections, leukemia, lymphoma, etc.  I have dealt with this since I

was 18 (I am now 41)

and am very proactive when it comes to my health. Mostly b/c it took them 8

years to diagnose me.  So for my wbc to change so suddenly after years of

elevation, I ask questions.  Personally, I think it's a good thing.  Just

don't want it to get down too low.

 

My doc is great, works with me and I only mentioned this because of my

history.  I appreciate the advice.

Gail

Subject: Re: any other kineret users have issues w/this?

To: Stillsdisease

Date: Friday, February 5, 2010, 9:52 PM

 

Gail,

That WBC level the doc told you was " too low " just is the point at which it is

BELOW NORMAL. I assure you, patients have far lower WBC counts. Being just a

notch below normal just means that the doc should WATCH your WBC. Do you know

how high your count was before you started the Kineret? BTW, an elevated WBC is

a sign of infection or even leukemia so that's not a good thing either. It may

have been that you had something else going on in your system.

It's important not to confuse chronology with causality. For instance, if you

took a Kineret shot and then got hit by a bus, did the Kineret cause you to get

hit by a bus? Of course not, no one would think that it would. BUT, take

medication and automatically the assumption is made that a change in ANYTHING is

caused by that medication. And the truth is that there's no way to know other

than to WATCH your WBC for a bit while on Kineret. Of course if your WBC

PLUMMETS really low, like Larry's at 2.0, then the docs must take immediate

action and GUESS at the guess. Sometimes they're right, sometimes they're wrong.

It's like an episode of " House " . A small drop in the WBC to 4.8 isn't that big a

deal; it's still WITHIN NORMAL RANGE.

What I am saying is that your doc should be watching your WBC and shouldn't have

said anything since your WBC is still within the low end of normal. Basically,

he's jumped the gun and made you worry about something that may never happen.

Next time, your WBC could be up again. That's the way these things can work.

That is unless you've seen a steady decline in your WBC in the last few months

while taking Kineret; then he's already watched it and what he said was just a

warning about a trend he's seeing.

Basically, don't " borrow trouble " ; nothing has happened yet. I'm sure you, like

the rest of us, have real things to worry about then things that might happen,

then again, might not. [g]