Swellings and rashes and gasps - oh my!

Today I went to do my blood work as usual. Usually there's an assorted collection of phials, they are all coded by colour and I've been trying to figure out what they all are. There was a new one today - light blue - I asked the Vampire what it was for and she told me it was for checking my blood coagulation, "oh" said I, "are you going to have some surgery soon? she said. "No" said I, but then spent the next three hours in the waiting room worrying that Dr. Messner was going to drop some horrible news on me. But he didn't - phew!


Liver is still doing well. (or 'Oliver' as Heather has christianed him) and I can double the hydroxyurea but have to keep a look out for swellings, rashes and shortness of breath and if I get a pain in my chest I have to go to Emergency straight away (well, duh!) Because of Oliver's prejudice against the Imatinib (Gleevec) it's looking like I will be starting the next generation, Dasatinib or nilatinib WHEN Oliver is feeling better. Only 10% of users on Nilatinib experience liver problems, so that sounds positive but I read that Dasatinib has a side effect of inflammation of fat under the skin - not good! I have a generous helping of fat under the skin and I really don't fancy the idea of it all getting inflamed. At least with the Gleevec it was just my eyes and ankles that got swollen and having slightly swollen eyes was advantageous as it hid the wrinkles ;) but swollen fat? I really can't face my bum and thighs getting more 'inflamed' than they already are!