Guest guest Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 In a message dated 1/3/2004 12:08:01 PM Central Standard Time, pgl-groups@... writes: Can you imagine living just a relatively short time ago, when the only treatment was a regular blood transfusion! Actually, Pierre, I don't have to imagine. That's the days when I dialyzed. 25 years ago, there was no EPO - scientists knew that it was a hormone produced by the kidneys (and I learned about it in college), but there was no way to replicate the hormone economically to give it to dialysis patients like myself. I was a bit nervous about the transfusions myself because I was awaiting a transplant at the time, and there were sensitivity concerns even then. Robin s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 Fortunately, anemia is treatable these days. Can you imagine living just a relatively short time ago, when the only treatment was a regular blood transfusion! The right dose of EPO, plus adequate levels of iron and vitamin B12 is all you need. Sometimes it takes a while to feel the effects of EPO - typically about 6 weeks. But it may be longer than that after you start, if the dose has to be increased, and if the iron and/or vitamin B12 levels aren't already up where they should be. Since you have to wait to see the results, it can add up to a few months. Sometimes a person may not respond to the more common type of EPO, and in that case, they are usually switched to another type. The only hitch is that you have to reach a certain level of anemia before EPO is prescribed, and covered by drug plans. Pierre Re: LIFE GOES ON > Oh, I forgot one thing, my fatigue is from my anemia, which I've been battling for about 4 months now. > > julie jurgens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 Fortunately, anemia is treatable these days. Can you imagine living just a relatively short time ago, when the only treatment was a regular blood transfusion! The right dose of EPO, plus adequate levels of iron and vitamin B12 is all you need. Sometimes it takes a while to feel the effects of EPO - typically about 6 weeks. But it may be longer than that after you start, if the dose has to be increased, and if the iron and/or vitamin B12 levels aren't already up where they should be. Since you have to wait to see the results, it can add up to a few months. Sometimes a person may not respond to the more common type of EPO, and in that case, they are usually switched to another type. The only hitch is that you have to reach a certain level of anemia before EPO is prescribed, and covered by drug plans. Pierre Re: LIFE GOES ON > Oh, I forgot one thing, my fatigue is from my anemia, which I've been battling for about 4 months now. > > julie jurgens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 Fortunately, anemia is treatable these days. Can you imagine living just a relatively short time ago, when the only treatment was a regular blood transfusion! The right dose of EPO, plus adequate levels of iron and vitamin B12 is all you need. Sometimes it takes a while to feel the effects of EPO - typically about 6 weeks. But it may be longer than that after you start, if the dose has to be increased, and if the iron and/or vitamin B12 levels aren't already up where they should be. Since you have to wait to see the results, it can add up to a few months. Sometimes a person may not respond to the more common type of EPO, and in that case, they are usually switched to another type. The only hitch is that you have to reach a certain level of anemia before EPO is prescribed, and covered by drug plans. Pierre Re: LIFE GOES ON > Oh, I forgot one thing, my fatigue is from my anemia, which I've been battling for about 4 months now. > > julie jurgens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 Hi Robin. It's interesting to have someone in the group who experienced that time. I was there too, but my IgAN was extremely mild at the time. I've been lucky. I didn't start needing EPO until i was already more than 6 months into dialysis. Pierre Re: LIFE GOES ON > In a message dated 1/3/2004 12:08:01 PM Central Standard Time, > pgl-groups@... writes: > Can you imagine living just a > relatively short time ago, when the only treatment was a regular blood > transfusion! > > Actually, Pierre, I don't have to imagine. That's the days when I dialyzed. > 25 years ago, there was no EPO - scientists knew that it was a hormone produced > by the kidneys (and I learned about it in college), but there was no way to > replicate the hormone economically to give it to dialysis patients like myself. > I was a bit nervous about the transfusions myself because I was awaiting a > transplant at the time, and there were sensitivity concerns even then. > > Robin s > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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