Finally got through an Arzerra infusion without reaction! And some musings on medical rationing...

So last Friday I was once again admitted for my ofatumumab infusion but fortunately this time around I had no reaction, and left the hospital about 8:30 PM for home.  I did not need any platelets or RBCs either since I had been transfused on last admission with RBC a week ago and platelets 2 days prior. But total WBC was 33.4K and I had only 3% neutrophils. It should be noted that my WBC count a week ago, also after whopping loading dose of dexamethasone (known to increase WBC) was 79.9K so maybe my marrow is starting to respond. Next count is tomorrow so we'll see. Am to visit Dr Porter at Penn for followup in 2 days. 

The cellulitis on left leg is finally healing so looks like I won't need a skin graft. What we thought was dead tissue was probably just a lot of blood under the skin because of my low platelets.

Anyway, onward and upward.....I posted a link to an interesting NYT editorial Beyond Obamacare on Facebook and will share here as well. It is all about the need to ration limited resources in the Medicare age group. I believe it is true but at the same time the need to control costs may directly affect those of us with CLL lucky to get to Medicare age. 

Here is what I wrote on FB about this:

Rationing is inevitable, we should do it rationally, taking a page from UK NICE, and using QALY of around $50K as yardstick - I may be shooting myself in the foot with this,as my leukemia may require quite expensive treatment in the years to come....I am currently in the middle of a 12-infusion course of a second generation monoclonal Ab, which reportedly costs $9K for each infusion....If I can get 2 years remission with this, would meet the NICE criteria....

Wishful thinking re a long remission? Perhaps, since I got very little long-term response from Bendamustine-Rituximab....time will tell. I know that a clinical trial somewhere is in my future....