POZ Community Forums
Main Forums => Pre-HAART Long-Term Survivors => Topic started by: J.R.E. on April 20, 2008, 08:08:48 pm
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Got my blood tests scheduled for tomorrow( Monday) at 9:00Am. Wish me luck ! I feel kind of strange (concerned) about these ones, been a very strange past 3 months !!
We"ll See what happens !
I got do my fasting tonight !! I'l be hungry tomorrow !
Ray
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Good luck Ray! Let us know how it turns out.
hugs,
Alan
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Wishing you good luck, Ray. As Alan said, let us know how everything turns out.
And go pig-out once those bloods are drawn.
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i had blood drawn last week (during the crisis with Jim) and will get my results back thurs. I'm sure they won't be so great because of what all happened. I think a lot of times, it's easy to worry about what these next results are going to show - even when things have been good; but especially when things haven't been going so well.
Personally, I've gone through so many "blips" before that I always try to remember that it's all about the "trend" of several results that determine how much you should really worry. Some of the times when I was sure my numbers would be "bad", they turned out to be good; and sometimes when I was certain that I'd be hearing good news, I'd hear about another blip up in my viral load. (my tcells usually just stay around 250, so I've gotten used to no change there). Go figure ::)
Testing anxiety is a pain in the butt. Here's hoping the "strange-ness" since your last labs didn't affect your numbers. ;)
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Ok,... thats done... Just the ten day wait for those results !! Fast visit today ! Blood pressure good. 1 pound lighter ( thats good). Now I am debating on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or wait 45 minutes and get a whopper !!
Ray
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Ok,... thats done... Just the ten day wait for those results !! Fast visit today ! Blood pressure good. 1 pound lighter ( thats good). Now I am debating on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or wait 45 minutes and get a whopper !!
Ray
Hey Ray,
Why not do both? A quickie peanut butter and jelly and then a whopper. Oh, what I wouldn't do for a whopper - or even McDonald's. Its been many years.
I hate those fasting tests. For some reason, even though I may not eat any less than usual, its the thought that I can't that gets me.
Maybe too many years on Crixivan.
Now, lets hope the numbers are great.
HUGS,
Mark
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Now I am debating on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or wait 45 minutes and get a whopper !!
mmm, whopper.
I say get the whopper. though it might add that pound back onto you. LOL that sounds good to me too, so that's what I'll get on my next trip to the hospital to check on jim. I was getting tired of Taco Bell anyway and everyone gripes that it's no good for me - but that's why I like it. LOL
now that it's done, don't fret about though numbers until appt day. ;)
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You're a tough ol' bird, I'm sure your numbers will be great. In the meantime why not enjoy a peanutbutter and jelly whopper. You can kill your cholesterol with one
stone sandwich. ;D
Hal
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"You're a tough ol' bird, " Doxie
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What he said.
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HI Ray , wishing you good luck on the labs .
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wishing you the best on your new blood work............ :)
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Hello All,
Finally got those blood test results back, that were taken on 4/21/08. Overall, not too bad :
Total cholesterol --218 was 205 on 1/14/08
LDL --139 was 125 on 1/14/08
HDL--58 was 50 on 1/14/09
Triglycerides--105 was 150 on 1/14/08
CD-4 379 was 303 on 1/14/08
CD-4 percentage 12.7 was 10.7 on 1/14/08
Viral Load <50 was <50 on 1/14/08
CBC, chemical profile, and amylase are all OK
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The following are my blood tests results since Starting meds on 10/2003 :
MONTH/YEAR
10/03---CD-4- 16 VIRAL LOAD--500,000 PERCENTAGE <4% ( From October of 03)
12/03---CD-4- 48 VIRAL LOAD- <50 PERCENTAGE--- 4%
1/04-----CD-4- 76 VIRAL LOAD--155 PERCENTAGE--6%
2/04-----CD-4-87 VIRAL LOAD--89 PERCENTAGE--5%
3/04-----CD-4- 125 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--6%
5/04-----CD4--139 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--7%
6/04-----CD4--150 VIRAL LOAD--150 PERCENTAGE--6%
8/04-----CD4--199 VIRAL LOAD-- 96 PERCENTAGE--8%
11/04---CD4--253 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--8%
2/05----CD4--239 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--7%
5/05----CD4- 213 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--7%
8/05----CD4--333 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--7%
11/05--CD4--328 VIRAL LOAD--166 PERCENTAGE--8%
2/06---CD4--279 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--10%
5/06---CD4--350 VIRAL LOAD--288 PERCENTAGE--11%
7/06-- CD4--322 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--10%
10/06-CD4--286 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE- 11%
1/07---CD4--332 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE-- 12%
4/07--CD4---380 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--14%
8/07--CD4--366 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--13%
11/07--CD4-295 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--12%
1/08--CD4-303 VIRAL LOAD--<50 PERCENTAGE--10%
4/08--CD4-379 VIRAL LOAD---<50 PERCENTAGE----12%
Well, that's where I currently stand with my numbers. Still hanging in there !
Ray
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Not bad numbers, Ray. I forget, are you on a choletserol med?
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Not bad numbers, Ray. I forget, are you on a choletserol med?
Hi Betty,
Yes I am am Lipitor ( 10mgs) But I've been cutting the pills in half, taking only 5mgs per day versus 10mgs per day. Instead of the 70mgs per week, I am taking 35 mgs per week. I've been experimenting !! I know, I know !!! I may have to go with the full dose daily. ::)
Ray
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Ray, Ray, Ray......
I take Lipitor also, 10 mgs every night. It worked wonderfully for me. Yes, you should probably take the recommended dose, but you know that.
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Hey Ray,
Only 5 mg of Lipitor and you still have pretty good cholesterol numbers?
Lucky guy.
I take 20 mgs of Pravastatin and 10 mgs of Zetia - along with 6 grams (6,000 mgs) of fish oil and my numbers still suck.
My last triglycerides were 261.
But, at least the LDL was down to 80.
Hang in there.
HUGS,
Mark
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Hey, Ray -- good sounding lab results.
Maybe you've covered this before, and I missed it, but why are you on 3 nukes [Epzicom (abacavir + lamivudine) and Viread], in addition to the Viramune? Seems like overkill, unless your HIV has some resistance to the nukes.
I take the highest dose of Crestor (40mg/day) for my cholesterol, and it's working well, although I worry a bit about its possible muscle-wasting side effect (no signs of that, thankfully).
Peter
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Hey, Ray -- good sounding lab results.
Maybe you've covered this before, and I missed it, but why are you on 3 nukes [Epzicom (abacavir + lamivudine) and Viread], in addition to the Viramune? Seems like overkill, unless your HIV has some resistance to the nukes.
Peter
Hello Peter,
Thanks for asking. This subject had come up several of times on the old forums. Had some previous discussion with Gerry on this same issue. The doctor wanted to add the viread , to the already existing regimen of Viramune and Epzicom, around July of 04. He didn't think at that time, that those meds alone were doing a sufficient job, in suppression of the viral load. I was real hesitant on doing this, as there was some discussion about the 3 nuke, and one non-nuke unconventional therapy. Besides myself, I know of at least one other person ( Herman) that is also on the same regimen. I also believe there is one other person on this site, on the same regimen too. Even went as far to ask the same question on the John Hopkins site ( to doctor Gallant) . I have his response somewhere in file, I will have to see if I can find it and post it here, as it is no longer on their site.
However, I held off adding the Viread, until around September of 04. I've never had resistance testing done, to my knowledge ( unless the doctor held back in telling me something, or I was so brain fogged at the time, that I couldn't remember that conversation), and everytime I ask the doctor about dropping, one drug, and going to the 3 drug regimen, he continues to stand pretty solid in continuing this way. I often wonder, what the results may have been, had I not added the Viread to the existing regimen, as I held onto that bottle of viread almost two months before starting it around September of 04. Does seem like a little overkill, doesn't it? I am in one of those situations now, where I am leary about dropping one of the nukes. Also read as much as I could find, regarding 3 meds versus 4 HAART therapy. I also wonder at times, whether I should have been more inquisitive, with the doctor about this, and pushed the issue a little further.
It's time to ask the doctor again, to see if there can be a simplification of this regimen, but I am pretty sure I know what the answer will be !! If anything changes, I will continue to update
Thanks for asking Peter----Ray
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Hey, Ray -- good sounding lab results.
Maybe you've covered this before, and I missed it, but why are you on 3 nukes [Epzicom (abacavir + lamivudine) and Viread], in addition to the Viramune? Seems like overkill, unless your HIV has some resistance to the nukes.
I take the highest dose of Crestor (40mg/day) for my cholesterol, and it's working well, although I worry a bit about its possible muscle-wasting side effect (no signs of that, thankfully).
Peter
yeah I was on a form of those early on as well...
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Sounds like pretty good labs. Bummer about the high cholesterol. I'm lucky it runs in my family but I don't have it yet. I can relate to the fasting though since I have to do that before I have work done on my esophagus. I never feel very hungry during the week but the night before and the day of the procedure when I can't eat I'm starving :)