Hi
Dad was dx last August. He says that before the dx he had stomach pains which seemed to come from the spleen area. He is still getting these but has not mentioned it at any of his appts. Is it something he should be mentioning? My feeling is that the more information the Drs have the better.
He has also noticed a change in the look of his belly button. It sometimes looks very inflamed and angry looking. Again, is this something he should be mentioning?
Hope you are all doing well.
TIA
Your dad should mention this to his doctor as the spleen can be enlarged which is why he is feeling discomfort and pain. His doctor should certainly have examined him at diagnosis to see if the spleen could be felt -it should not normally be palpable- and I would expect that the doctor would continue to check this if your dad had splenic enlargement/pain at diagnosis.
Please encourage him to mention this on his next visit.
Sandy
Thanks for response.
His spleen was enlarged at initial dx. He has a very bad habit of saying he's fine when the Dr asks "how are you today?". He often tells them he's fine because at that moment in time he does feel fine. Another thing he does is tell them that something is wrong and then gives them a reason for it, eg constant itching but apparently that has been better with the longer days! (That night he went home and was itching all evening.)
Any ideas about the belly button?
Sorry I have no idea why he might be experiencing this problem... but it may be that he has some sort of infection. Salt water bathing might help but I would again say that his doctor should know about this problem..... also the itching you describe could be one of the side effects of Glivec therapy. If it is a problem his doctor might give him topical steroid cream which will give some relief and may resolve the itchiness. I think this sort of side effect does resolve over time, at least for most people.
best wishes,
Sandy
