Seven years ago, I was diagnosed with Polycythemia vera, a rare blood disease and disorder of the bone marrow that causes your body to over produce red and white blood cells and platelets.
Polycythemia greatly increases your chances of heart attack, stroke and heart failure, due to the strain on the heart caused from the increased thickening of your blood.
There is no Polycythemia cure. The most common treatment is Therapeutic Phlebotomy (once known as “blood-letting”), for the purpose of reducing the blood’s thickness and blood cell count to prevent excessive thickness and clotting of the blood.
One unit of blood (about 1 pint) is removed weekly until the hematocrit level is less than 50. Therapy is continued as needed. Occasionally, chemotherapy may be given to reduce the number of red blood cells made by the bone marrow.
Personally, I needed and received this treatment from 2 weeks to 2 month intervals, depending on the severity of my blood count.
I am a 44 year old male and had smoked a pack of cigarettes a day since I was 19 years old. Like most people, I took my health for granted.
In 2005, my medical doctor sent me to an oncologist for treatment of the Polycythemia. For 7 years, they both warned me and insisted that I stop smoking. “You are playing with fire!”
I tried every method to stop smoking, failing miserably, only to pick the cigarettes right back up. I knew I had to do something.
My wife, Debi, signed us up for the program at The STOP Clinic and I was very skeptical. I do not exaggerate when I say the program was instant success for us. I can confidently say, “Now I am a non-smoker and have been since the day of my first appointment !”
Our smoking cessation is NOT the most remarkable and shocking “adventure” of the program. After 7 days of beginning their detoxification program, my numbers came back into normal, healthy range!
My medical doctor and my oncologist were in shock and wanted more information on The STOP Clinic’s program and procedures.
Best of all, my oncologist informed me that I didn’t need to come back for 6 months. I had never gone this long without a blood test in 7 years ! Now … I was in shock and happy at the same time.
My numbers came into normal range and are still improving:
| Tests | Prior Visit | After 10 Days | Normal Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Blood Count Red Blood Count Hemoglobin Hematocrit Oxygen Levels Weight Loss |
17.9 12.0 17.9 51.7 95 |
9.6 5.14 15.7 46.4 99 percent 9.6lbs |
4.0-10.5 4.10-5.60 12.5-17.0 36.0-50.0 – – |
I am curious to test my cholesterol numbers. I already feel they have improved.
According to medical research, there is no cure for Polycythemia.
My numbers have changed, I know I am healing and I already feel like a different person. I feel calm, relaxed and now hardly anything bothers me. I was even surprised that I hold no emotional attachment to the cigarettes that I consumed for 25 years. This was the easiest way to stop smoking by ditching the cigarettes and changing my diet, simultaneously.
The combination of the smoking cessation program and the detox program has produced the results I was unable to achieve by other means.
With the changes in my life and the successes I have achieved, I highly recommend this program to others.
Bruce Grant
Kernersville, NC