[MDSPerth]

My husband Paul was on G-CSF and EPO jointly for 8 months commencing almost immediately after diagnosis of hypocellular MDS and in the lead up to his MUD transplant. He had three neupogen injections per week, and started treatment with two EPO injections. The EPO was lowered to once weekly and then once fortnightly because he was responding so positively. This treatment kept him asypmtomatic of the disease at all times. At diagnosis his bone marrow was only only producing all of the three blood lines at a very low percentage of the normal range. However with this treatment his blood cells lifted well inside of the normal range.

You have to remember that even if there are positive results, that this medication is a bandaid and can stop working at any given time.

From what I have been told and also read, using the two together gives better results than using either on their own. However, I have also read that only about 30% of patients using these medications shows positive response.

I understand that these types of medication are not commonly used in patients with hypercellular MDS as there are suggestions that it might increase the blast cells.

Sometimes these injections coincided - he had control as he was self injecting and preferred it if he did it at the same time. This was fine with his consultant.

Hope this is helpfull.