A family member was diagnosed with acute lymphatic leukemia a week ago after low white blood cells count from a routine blood test.
He is 68 and as far as we are aware he is otherwise in decent health apart from strong meds for mental health.
He likes to hold his cards close to his chest and has also told the doctor not to tell us anything.
We have found some statistics online and they doctor was able to tell us that they would normally give patients hi is age a combination of the tablets and the intravenous chemo. And they give a lesser dose at this age due to risks of the chemo treatment. We know he will stay in hospital for at least a few weeks.
We are basically looking for more information things like how long treatment would will take, how many rounds of chemo he is likely to receive, what are the effects on someone his age.
But also there aren’t many statistics for people his age.
Oh @Eve1 a great big welcome to our forum and I really feel for you, it cannot be easy for you being powerless to get information or know what is going on with your family member.
What I would say is perhaps beware of googling as there might be some unreliable and some times out of date information out there.
I was diagnosed 21 yrs ago and at that time I was given a 5-10 life expectancy and I am still here.
From what you say your family member is capable of making his own decisions and therefore that is his right.
Also you say he is on strong meds for mental health.
The advantage these days is there is no one size fits all so I expect he will be looked at as a unique individual and if he has a treatment plan it will be tailored to his medical needs taking in his medical history and other factors.
Perhaps this is why you actually will not find answers to your questions.
Personally also having a family member that is difficult to get any information from I find that if I give him a little space and don’t keep asking him questions he will be more informative, but it is hard.
Perhaps all you can be is there for him when needed.
The Blood Cancer UK support line is also there if you need it on 0808 2080 888.
We are here for you to support you and as a place that you can honestly say exactly how it is to be you.
Please do look after yourself as well as you are trying to look after your family member, he is very lucky to have you there.
Please keep posting as I look forward to hearing more about you both and take lots of care
Hello there @Eve1, welcome to the forum. I’m so sorry to read of your relative being diagnosed with a blood cancer. Having been diagnosed myself I’d say it really can affect how you see yourself and can exacerbate already difficult feelings relating to mental health conditions. It’s lovely that you’re trying to support your relative.
I tried finding information about acute lymphatic leukaemia to share but it doesn’t appear to be a type of blood cancer. Here is the Blood Cancer UK information about leukaemias that might be helpful in figuring out what your relative is living with: Leukaemia - what is it, symptoms and treatment | Blood Cancer UK
I’d be wary of looking for statistics of a blood cancer as prognoses are so very individual to each of us and our own specific health histories. Also, you might not be able to find any accurate information due to looking for a different blood cancer to the one your relative has been diagnosed with. Best to be sure before researching, and remember that Dr Google is not reliable.
Could you ask your relative what he thinks about it all? Would he like to join the forum perhaps? There’s a saying; you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink. Perhaps your relative needs time to come to terms with his diagnosis.
Do please keep us posted about how your relative and your family get on @Eve1.