Hi All.

I got the results of my blood test much faster than I expected. I went in to give my blood on Wednesday the 4th for my annual blood test. Having a chat with the Doctor, we agreed I would see her in a year. I also gave extra blood (that’s how much I care) to a study into blood cancer. I mean I have an ulterior motive, but it was also worthwhile.

On the train at the end of the day I get called from a private number. Answering the phone I find out its the doctor. Having had a call the same day once before I gave blood tests (when I was diagnosed) I can assure you this isn’t a great feeling. Your heart lurches and you immediately wonder how bad it is. We start to talk and then she drops out, as the train goes out of signal. Ten minutes of worry later she gets hold of me again.

After some small talk I find out I’m not going to die in the next week. So that’s honestly a bit of a win. The results are a bit worse than normal though, and her call is to make sure I see her in six months opposed to the normal year just to check. It was nothing actually worse than that, but I can tell it was quite sobering. Feeling somewhat less panicky, but also worried, I wait 24 hours for the email with the results to come through. its not a great night, and I can tell you that even with five and a half years or relative plain sailing (after the first year) it doesn’t make you feel good.

Anyway the results are as follows. (in context with each years).

Date	Lymphocyte Count	White Blood Cell Count	Platelet Count
Average	1 to 4.8	4 to 11	150-440
11/27/2013	9.7	14.3	208
12/18/2014	18.7	24	207
04/01/2016	22.1	27.3	187
21/12/2016	22.8	28.5	176
22/12/2017	25.4	31.1	143
22/12/2018	29	33.7	135
22/12/2019	42.3	48.5	118

As you can see the Lymphocytes have jumped somewhat and the platelets dropped. Which is kind of the usual direction of travel. Its just more pronounced than previously.

So after the bad results I took a period of quiet reflection to work out what I was feeling about it all.

Firstly the good news. Platelets have dropped, but actually only by the exact average of 17 they have dropped since 2014. So in line really. Remember I only need treatment on those when I reach around 50. (That said clotting and bruising gets worse as it drops, but its fine at the moment).

At the current line it would mean treatment in 2023, or there about’s to increase my platelet number.

Lymphocytes (and white cells, but only in line with the lymphocytes) have grown a lot more than average. In fact they’ve gone up 13 points against an average of 4 or so. Thats pretty bad, but I will only need treatment when they reach around 100. In line with that, if this is the new normal then I will need treatment in early 2024. IF ITS NOW A NEW LINE OF FIT.

If its worse I will need it sooner, and if its a blip it could still be a long time.

The key to this rise, I think, is the illness I had in June, which knocked me out for nearly two weeks. This was bad and made me display some really pronounced B-symptoms. I suspect my body has spotted an illness and was making lymphocytes like nobodies business to get me better. As they don’t die like they should it increased my count quite a lot.

Anyway that’s my thought on it. If this is the case then as long as this isn’t a regular thing (And I have hither too had no days off in nearly eight years) then I should be fine for another fair while. Lymphocyte wise.

So either way unless things get even worse it means I will now need to think about treatment in about three years time. In three and a half I will have been ten years since diagnosis without treatment, which has been my goal since this blog started (see the ticker). Prognosis is also 50/50% survival at 10 years, so I will also have beaten the odds as half the people will have died before I needed treatment.

Even so, its not a welcome change lymphocyte wise, as I had thought platelets were going to be my problem. I guess I’ll have to see how things go in six months time, and have a blood test then. Fingers crossed its a blip with the lymphocytes, and I can just worry about the platelets.

Anyway, not great news before Christmas and I have given myself a week to process before putting it out there. Still so many people have had disappointing results today I felt it was appropriate (sorry, I couldn’t help it).

Have a great weekend, and keep well. Make sure you treasure your loved ones over the festive period, and in general. Don’t take life for granted, and enjoy it. Its easy to get bogged down and you should try and at least find quiet enjoyment in everything you can, be it a nice coffee, or a moment of intimacy with a loved one. Phone calls out of the blue from a doctor are a horrible thing, and they can rock you. It has made me reevaluate life yet again, and luckily I realise that other than sleep and diet I am living the life I want to. I work four days and spend lots of time with my children. Work itself is something I am passionate about and love doing. Make sure you feel the same if you can as you never know how long it will be.

Enjoy it all. Speak soon.