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Hope

Hello

My father was diagnosed and it was shock for my family.He also diagnosed APNEA. His doctor said that may be APNEA was reason of CML and using CPAP machine would help him and imatinib would not be necessary, because APNEA causes insufficient  oxygen for brain.What will you say?  

Hello

I'm sorry to hear about your father.  The only thing I would day is that he must take imatinib for cml.  It is a wonderful drug, I've been taking it for over 7 years now and it has saved my life.  If I had not been taking it, I would almost certainly be dead by now.  All the other people on this site would agree that imatinib (or one of the other related drugs) are absolutely essential.

If your father's doctor will not prescribe it, he should ask for a second opinion from a specialist in haematology or oncology.  I hope your father gets the treatment he deserves.

Olivia

Hi

I am sorry to hear about your father. I totally agree with Olivia. He must take medication for CML - one of the TKIs available.  He also needs to see a blood specialist - a haematologist . I, too , was diagnosed over 7 years ago and, thanks to the medication (Imatinib) I am leading a normal life and expect to live a normal length of time. The only cause for CML the researchers have discovered is radiation (and maybe benzene) so I am not sure your father's doctor knows enough about CML..

best

Chrissie

Hi

I am sorry to hear about your father. I totally agree with Olivia. He must take medication for CML - one of the TKIs available.  He also needs to see a blood specialist - a haematologist . I, too , was diagnosed over 7 years ago and, thanks to the medication (Imatinib) I am leading a normal life and expect to live a normal length of time. The only cause for CML the researchers have discovered is radiation (and maybe benzene) so I am not sure your father's doctor knows enough about CML..

best

Chrissie

thank for your advice.

I wonder how important is when you begin getting imatinib,a month later or a month before? and how much does imatinib cost in your country?

Hello

I don't think one month would make too much difference, but it is as well to get started on imatinib as soon as possible.  

In the UK we are very lucky, we are given it by the NHS, paid for by everyone's taxes.  At one time it was very expensive, but recently the patent has expired and imatinib has become much cheaper.  The cost will probably depend on where you live.  There may be other people reading these messages who know more than I do, but I hope you manage to find all the answers you need.

Olivia

Hi,

I am sorry to hear your father has been diagnosed with CML - however, as Olivia and Chrissie have already said, imatinib is highly effective in treating CML and many of us on this forum have responded well to imatinib (as well as others brands in this same class of drugs) for many years since they became the gold standard treatment for CML in the early 2000's. This drug - which is one of 5 drugs that work the same way - target the abnormal CML white cells and effectively shut down their activity. This means that after some months your fathers CML will be under control and he can live out his normal lifespan.  

Regarding sleep apnea- this is an entirely separate condition to CML and is entirely unconnected in that it is NOT the cause of CML. If not resolved it may have other health consequences more related to cardio vascular events such as high blood pressure etc, for a list of complications see NHS choices link below.

Sleep apnea (AP-ne-ah) is a common disorder in which you have one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep. Breathing pauses can last from a few seconds to minutes. They may occur 30 times or more an hour. Typically, normal breathing then starts again, sometimes with a loud snort or choking sound.

What Is Sleep Apnea? - NHLBI, NIHhttps://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sleepapnea http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Sleep-apnoea/Pages/Introduction.aspx#compli...

I would advise your father to seek a second opinion from a specialist haematologist as his current doctors advise that he may be able to stop taking imatinib is, to say the least, ill-informed. He needs expert treatment and monitoring of his response to imatinib.  You must understand that he will need to take this drug (or one like it) every day without fail if his CML is to be teated effectively. He also needs to be monitored with regular blood tests to see if his response is in line with current guidelines for CML treatment.

Sandy

You should start therapy with imatinib as soon as possible after diagnosis. It depends on your fathers test results and whether he is in chronic stage or one of the later stages of this disease. Please read CML Facts via the link at the top of this page. 

It is difficult to say how much imatinib (or any other TKI) would cost. As Olivia has said in the UK and Europe as well as many other regions of the world, imatinib is now available in generic form which should be much cheaper than the original branded version of imatinib namely Glivec®  or Gleevec®

You have not said in which country you are based so it is difficult to advise you about access or cost.

Sandy

Thank you Sandy and all of you.

I hope everything will be ok. I wish you good health .