[Mike Conlon]

Hi Mike: Linda Jo is exactly correct in what she says. I am not nearly as well informed as some members of this forum. I know that elevated blasts is bad, lowered blasts is good. Low blood counts is not good, normal or close to normal blood counts is good. Great oversimplification but this approach seems to work for me. I just started my third year on Dacogen and have been in total remission since early this year. Most people on this forum are not on Dacogen. I don't know the significance of this fact, just what my results happen to be. Ask questions, research, ask more questions. The oncology nurses in the treatment rooms can be a great source of help. I have not found my doctor to be very forthcoming, but it is quite difficult to argue with success. This is a great forum, but it can be very frustrating to try and compare other peoples stories and attempt to compare their story with yours. Nonetheless I have found this forum to be a great source of information and inspiration. Be patient, the journey is long and there will be many trying circumstances and moments filled with hope and moments where you are not so happy. There appears to be an ever increasing interest in developing new therapies for MDS. This is good. Good luck and share your experiences with us. I might also add that it took me close to two years to realize that a lot of side issues should be discussed with my primary care physician and in my case my endocrinologist. My experience has been that the oncologist is so focused on the disease that he either doesn't have the focus or the understanding of all the side issues that arise from this disease and the treatment side effects. Once again I am only recounting my personal experiences.