normal vs enlarged spleen

Normal vs Enlarged Spleen 
A Question on ITCH by CindyLee:
My mother has myelofibrosis with an exteme itch. She had colon cancer in '91 and soon after she quit the chemo she developed this awful itch. We tried everything and saw a number of doctors. About a year ago or so we discovered "neurontin." I think it is for seizures. At any rate, she has had great success with it. She still itches occasionally and hates showers but she has far fewer episodes making it much more tolerable. Hope this info helps you too!

Her Dr. is considering removal of her spleen because her blood counts are very low. Can anyone tell me their experience with this procedure? She is 75 yrs old. Thanks.
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mod:  "Let's hear what our other participants have to offer for itch"
Besides medications, is there something that your mom (dads) could be exposed to that causes red blood cells to die off too quickly?

The only chemical I know of that does that predominately is 2-butoxyethanol (it is known to cause hemolytic anemia; and I suspect autoimmune hemolytic anemia).  At the very least, it would be good to track the retic rate (even if too low, it doesn't change the CBC by much).  But with continued exposure it might be elevated, and therefore a good plan is to be sure to avoid exposure to this chemical.

Don't use any oven cleaners; carpet cleaners and aerosol spray cleaners for sure.  Watch other signs of too much of some kind of chemical and if you start coughing, getting headaches, things like that.

I would suggest these things to check for a cause of this ailment if it is from 2-butoxyethanol exposure.

 

 
Margaret reply 1-28-05

Rashes, itch, etc are one way our body has of complaining about too much of some kind of chemical, that's what I think.  Look at the list of the ways our body can 'complain'  When a lady helped out with an oil spill drill that had a small cleanup involved a year ago, she lost her voice, now she has even lost her gall bladder (part of the big picture of what 2-butoxyethanol can do) AND did the doctor think it might be a chemical overexposure?  He did a biopsy of her vocal chords.  She knew more than most, because I had shared about this chemical and learned that her brother who was a painter died of the blood damage extended effects &/or the prostate cancer he was being seen for ... just a year prior.
 
PLUS a list of other things to report to your doctor.  Look at the big picture
How is your dad?  What kind of work does he do?

Tonya's Dad

 
Tonya, you say your dad was a brick mason.  I looked up a little info on it and found out that very good quality chemicals used in cleanup of a job were an important part of the process.  That they are put into a piece of equipment (so handling full strength chemical) and then are sprayed after being mixed with water.  If the chemicals have 2-butoxyethanol type of chemical, realize that the worst exposure is the vapors in one's eyes.  We do not often see the 'protective equipment as using air tight eye goggles
 
 
I learned about a chemical that first and foremost damages the red blood cells
 
 
One of the conditions you mention sounds like it should affect the white and platelet cells also.
 
It could be primarily an autoimmune condition; and if so, the immune system needs help ...
 
Does your dad remember a time when eyes burned and hurt and his urine turned dark?
The autoimmune hemolytic anemia goes undiagnosed, I believe because it fools the basic blood info doctors take
Ask what the retic rate is   www.valdezlink.com/check_blood.htm#retic
 
It goes from a high number with an acute exposure to 2-butoxyethanol type chemicals ... and for years will be in normal range; and even when under normal rate for making new red blood cells, the other numbers can still look OK
Ask the age of red blood cells; their size and their shape
 
What are the membranes like?
Is there trace blood in urine, for first years after the fatigue hits www.valdezlink.com/psa.htm
 
They can test directly for this autoimmune hemolytic anemia, but they don't because, they don't think it is there.
 
I have no medical background.  I just learned about this one chemical and have talked to a lot of people with known and suspected exposure to it.  Thus I see what the patterns are
 

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