giving up the spleen after 13 yrs

.........

I was diagnosed at age 26 and had my spleen removed at age 27. My count immediately went up to normal for the next 3 years with no meds, then out of the blue, my counts crashed. For the next 30 years, I went through practically all the known treatments: most treatments lasted for a while, some longer than others, some did absolutely nothing. I even was tested to determine if I had grown an "accessory" spleen.

At age 57, I started Nplate, which took about 3 months to work, and has been working for the last 2 years.

Looking back, I would not have had my spleen removed. Plus, there is mounting evidence that the spleen is more important than originally believed. I haven't suffered any obvious immune system harm from not having a spleen for the last 32 years: I rarely get a cold or flu, infections, and the like. I had pneumonia once, but I now get a pneumonia vaccine, and annual flu shots.

It's my OPINION that you always have the option to remove the spleen, but you can't put it back, and new and better treatments are being developed.

Good Luck!

Sissy - there are other treatment options to try if you're not crazy about spleen removal. Have you been offered anything besides steroids and IVIG? If not, maybe a second opinion is in order.