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Old Sat Dec 15, 2012, 01:07 AM
Neil Cuadra Neil Cuadra is offline
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Los Angeles, California
Posts: 2,553
Norma,

I think you, Yashar, and Yashar's doctor are on the right track. Yashar got a long remission from ATG last time so I can see the advantage of another round compared with a transplant. Yashar's age makes him a good candidate for either treatment, but ATG is less risky.

Medical thinking about the horse/rabbit choice has evolved since 2004. It used to be pretty automatic to use horse in the U.S. and rabbit in Europe. Then doctors in the U.S. started using rabbit when giving repeated ATG to some patients who had had horse the first time. But head-to-head studies have now shown that horse has a statistically better success rate. Maybe I'm overgeneralizing but that's how I've interpreted what I've read.

Yashar's doctor is probably looking at the latest research and considering how it applies to the particulars of Yashar's aplastic anemia, just as he or she should.

I really wish that you, Yashar, and your family didn't have to deal with a relapse and go through more treatments, but it's not uncommon for a second round of ATG to be just as successful or even more successful than the original ATG.
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