Worried About My Father and his Blast %

[JasonG1972]

Hi all, and thanks in advance for any responses.

My father (68) was diagnosed with MDS 2 months ago. He's being treated with Vidaza and starts his second "round" tomorrow. Thus far, his only symptoms have been fatigue and he's had two transfusions, each of which have seemed to help.

My question/concern is this: Before treatment began, his blasts were at 14%. A blood test last week showed the blasts to be 3%, but now, we just received results from his most recent blood work (he has a test every week), and the blasts are at 23% -- a 20% jump in one week. Is it normal during treatment for there to be such wild variations in these numbers in such a short period of time?

Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from any of you..

JG

[slip up 2]

Jason...first of all sorry about your Dad...

Vidaza works in mysterious ways and blood counts are all over the place, i would not get too upset for the first couple of months on Vidaza....the blood work will be up and down as will the need for PRBC and maybe even PLTS...

As time goes on you will become more comfortable with the results...we have all been in your shoes on this forum and please do not feel any question is not worth asking. There are many folks that are so knowledgeable on this site.

The blasts that would concern me, would be from a bone marrow test.

Is your Dad getting any swelling or red marks from the Vidaza injection site?

Take Care
Kate

[JasonG1972]

Thanks Kate,

I assumed as much -- or at least I hoped that fluctuations like that are common. I dont think he's had any discomfort at the injection site. He's been tolerating the treatment quite well. I had just become so hopeful due to the 3% number, that suddenly seeing it jump to 23% stunned me.

Is the blast % in the blood used to diffetentiate between MDS and AML, or is that only done from the a bone marrow test?

Thanks again,
Jason

[slip up 2]

Jason
Bone Marrow....as you know not all MDS will turn into AML....
Do you know if he has a chromsome involved with his MDS.

Kate

[Chirley]

Hi Jason, when I was on Vidaza my BM blast count increased but the haematologist explained that sometimes the blast count can increase if the test is taken when the bone marrow is in a regenerative phase. i assume this can also happen with peripheral blood.

Hope things continue to improve.

Regards

Chirley

[stayinghopeful]

Jason,
When my dad was on Vidaza, the doctor explained to us that it usually takes 4-6 cycles of the chemo before you see its effect. He said that there was no use in doing a bone marrow biopsy before the 4 months since it takes a while for the Vidaza to build up and work in the patient's system.
Stay strong. You'll see it start to work. We saw improvements in my dad's numbers during his 4th cycle.

God bless.