Questions & Answers

Diagnosed just in May 2020 with PV. All my counts, Hematcrit, WBC's & Platelets are in good range. Recently developed intermittently ringing in my ears. Anyone else have this & is there any treatment for it you've found?

I've been wondering how cognizant we are of the absolutely necessary precautions related to its use. Hydroxyurea is poisonous, you know. These are some general directions from pharmacy flyers, and I've added some cautionary suggestions from my own experience, for whatever its worth.

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Proper Use:

Wear disposable gloves when handling the bottle or medicine. (I really doubt that many do this. I also believe that the container shouldn't be stored with other medications.)

Is a baseline bone marrow biopsy standard in the diagnosing of a MPN or for monitoring it?

And the answer is:
Things that can lower your platelet count include:

quinine, which is found in tonic water.
alcohol.
cranberry juice.
cow's milk.
tahini.
That's why I always have a nice cold beer or two after a sweaty day volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. LOL. Doctors will tell you no alcohol. I say live and enjoy your life.

I’m new to the site and just received positive JAK2 mutation results - discovered via a high platelet count at my regular annual physical. I’m in my mid-60s, in excellent health other than high platelet levels (800s), and all other blood levels and markers are normal and I had no symptoms. My hematologist suspects ET, but I will meet with him next week for confirmation & a full consultation and review of treatment options. The only other remarkable issue I’ve had over the past few years are… read more

I began thinking about the tremendous changes a diagnosis of an MPN brings to one’s life. For me as an old nurse, but one who always tries to keep abreast of what’s going on in the medical world, it was a shock to be told after routine annual labs that I was being referred to an oncologist due to my CBC being “out of whack,” with the likelihood of a blood cancer that I had never heard of. Then came the very painful bone marrow biopsy with confirmation of the JAK2 mutation pointing to… read more

I had two Pfizer vaccine shots in the spring of 2021, a booster in Nov. of 2021 - and then actually had a very mild case of Covid this past summer (2022). I get a flu shot every fall and I’m in general good health so am not sure I need another Covid booster at this point. So I’m curious what others are doing.

I have PV, having fortnightly phlebotomy's and are taking 1000mg hydroxyurea daily. I have been taking HU for 3 weeks now, but my hematocrit levels are still at 61%. How long would you expect it to take to start decreasing your levels? I guess it is a bit of an open ended question, but what have others experienced out there, to give me an idea. Much appreciated.