I
have had all these gastrointestinal problems, including severe pain
and vomiting. I have never been satisfied with the onc just
saying it is probably the 8cm in my mesenteric area which is causing
the problem. I had a test for h. pyloric and it was
negative, but I asked the onc to treat me for it anyway. He did
with a triple antibiotic regimen and I was "cured" for
about 8 months!! But, then it came back and we treated it
again. It has been better, but I still get the
bloating, constipation, etc. problems, and I have had one or two
episodes of the pain/vomitting...but, no where near as powerful as in
the beginning.
I read somewhere about parasites and with all the
travel that I have done, asked the onc to order me up some stool
sample tests. The result? I have diagnosed with
blastocystis hominis and one other (awaiting a copy of the full test
results). I have been busy reading and find that it is often
misdiagnosed as Irritable Bowel Syndrome and some researchers think
that it can aggravate and stimulate malignancies in
immunosuppressed patients. Now isn't that interesting?
If you get a moment, please take a look at this
article
http://ams.cu.edu.tr/July1999Vol8No2/hominis.htm
The onc has written a prescription for Flagyl, but I am going to do
some more reading before I take it. I have read that it
doesn't always kill all the parasites and can cause liver and kidney
damage. On second thought, I think Flagyl (under another name)
was one of the triple antibiotics he prescribed for the h. pyloric
treatment...might as well take it, I guess. I am starting to
become very fatigued again ... I know this whole thing sounds
self-serving, but my thoughts are that any NHL patient with gastro
problems should be checked out and treated for parasites, if
necessary! I have had several occasions to be treated with antibiotics
in the last two years and my energy level always improves dramatically
as does my overall feeling of physical well-being. I also tried
the artemesia drug (given for malaria) and it greatly improved my
overall feeling of health. Artemesia as an herb is one of the
"naturals" that is recommended for parasite infection by
some herbalists.
UPDATE:
An update on my b.hominis. I took Flagyl - 750mg
3 times a day - for 10 days. At about day 3, I almost
called the onc and asked what else we could do because I had flu
symptoms and lots of fatigue from this
antibiotic. But, I stuck with it and survived. Now, I feel
100%! Literally...if I didn't know I have NHL, I would think I was the
healthiest person in town. My strength and vigor has
returned, my stomach is giving
me no problems and many people are commenting on how well I look and
how my type A personality is in gear.
What all this means, I don't know. I go to see the onc on the
18th with a blood test the week before....if I don't get hung up on
jury duty. I do not relish the idea of sitting in a
courthouse during flu season....
Sands
