Hello again @Maya, you’re most welcome.
I’m really pleased to read that you haven’t been experiencing any symptoms. Although I’m not a doctor, I’d say it’s great that your haematocrit is only just above the “normal range” as this no doubt helps your blood flow more easily, reducing clotting risk.
Like you, I’d never heard of Polycythaemia vera (PV) (or any blood cancers, to be honest) and had no symptoms at diagnosis, and in fact the side effects I have now must be due to my daily hydroxyurea, namely annoying but mostly tolerable fatigue. Oh and apparently vertigo too. I’ve taken daily aspirin for over a decade which has never caused any negative side effects.
Unlike dear @Rammie18, I’ve not noticed my hair thin or nails change, but I shave my head anyway! I understand your concern. What I’m gathering, like @Rammie18 says, is that we all have such individual symptoms, reactions, and experiences taking these medicines that it’s hard to generalise.
I would say though, something that alleviated a lot of my anxiety about taking chemotherapy such as hydroxyurea is what my lovely haematologist told me to reassure me of its efficacy. He pointed out that young people with sickle cell have taken hydroxyurea for decades and yet they didn’t develop a greater incidence of other cancers or complications over time. That’s good enough for me!
Perhaps of interest are notes I shared regarding MPNs like ours from two different blood cancer conferences I attended—apologies, they’re quite buried in there: Northern California Blood Cancer Conference
Do keep posting, fellow Polycythaemia vera (PV) survivor!