The First Treatment Plan

Cathy and I talked about the treatment options suggested. We evaluated and weighed the pros and cons. Here is the current plan.

First, the doctors will perform a skin biopsy to more carefully examine the condition of my small fiber nerves and identify the particular types of disease process present. The best name for my current symptoms is Autoimmune-Mediated Small Fiber Sensory-Motor Neuropathy with Autonomic Nerve Dysfunction.


Second, I will under go a procedure called plasmapheresis. My blood will be filtered through a machine, removing my old, antibody contaminated blood plasma, then replacing it with new, uncontaminated plasma. In essence--an oil and filter change. This would involve five to seven days in the hospital at Vanderbilt. It looks like I will go in the hospital on March 9, 2010.

I will also need an additional CT/PET Scan in June, 2010 to evaluate what my lymph nodes are doing. They could get better, stay the same, or turn into something worse like lymphoma. I will need regular CT/PET Scans for many years.