Slowly, slowly

It’s early November, and I’m slowly trying to rebuild my blog so it’s up and running again (I realize the stylesheet isn’t working at the moment).  Flippy’s blog will be next, and then I’ll work on my Tired Girls site.  We unfortunately lost every single one of our 150 websites in early October because of an error made by the hosting company, and it’s been a real chore to try to restore each site from backups.  They’re coming though, they’re coming.  Lots of news to tell about, including three new adult foster cats that were rescued from death row in a Los Angeles shelter, three orphaned kittens from three different litters (including one feral who was probably hours away from death from starvation when she was discovered), and a new senior German shepherd dog, also a death row pull from Los Angeles.  Healthwise I’ve been feeling rather fragile, but was excited to learn of the discovery of XMRV, a retrovirus now believed to be the cause of the much-maligned conditions formerly known as “fibromyalgia” and “chronic fatigue syndrome” (now starting to be referred to as “XAND”: X-associated Neuro-immune Disease).  XMRV is similar to HIV, causes immune suppression, and often leads to lymphoma or leukemia (and definitely plays a role in prostate cancer).  It’s also contagious, so that CDC has told those of us infected with the virus that we can’t donate blood or organs, and they’re currently in closed-door meetings to determine how much of the virus is already present in the world’s stored blood supplies.  A doctor who treats HIV patients went on record a couple of weeks ago to say she’d rather be infected with HIV than XMRV because at least HIV patients have treatment options, which I hope sends a very clear message to all the doubters who think FMS and CFS were simply signs of laziness and lack of motivation.  Clinical trials are already starting to treat those of us infected with XMRV with the HIV drug AZT, so maybe there’s finally some hope for improved quality of life, although there’s never a cure for a retrovirus.  The doctor who discovered the link between XMRV and FM/CFS has twenty years of experience as a researcher for the National Cancer Institute, so her credentials are impeccable.  She feels the virus may lie dormant in people for years, and may even be hereditary, but is activated by cortisol (a hormone which is released in times of stress).  While it’s scary to think that I’m infected with a virus which is proven to cause cancer, it’s exciting to know that I might finally, finally see legitimate treatment options after suffering with this for 13 years.  It’s exciting to think I might be able to exercise again, to hold down a normal job, to travel, to not have to choose between showering and cooking dinner!  I won’t go so far as to say “life is good” because in many ways it sucks, but I will say, for the first time in a decade, that life is hopeful.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 11/10 at 05:43 PM

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Name:

Email (required, but will not be made public):

Location:

URL:

Smileys

Remember my details for future comments?

Let me know about new replies to this topic?

Previous entry: Why we call him "Frankenstein"

<< Back to main