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Wilson6
VIP Member
- Dec 17, 2019
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- 1,292
Some Red Cross centers will do therapeutic phlebos, you need a script from your doc and they don't charge you, depends on where you live. If you know a nurse or CNP, you can order through your doc phlebo kits and do them at home. I usually cut off the bag, my CNP friend is good with a 16 g needle and I bleed off into a paint beaker 500 ml, flush it and dispose of the sharps in the trash (container marked as sharps) every 10 - 12 weeks, keeps my Hb under 17.5 and HCT < 52%. 500 ml should cut your Hb about 1 g per bleed. They don't measure iron at RC, they measure Hb. I'd really work on getting it down to 17 g/dl. You should have your iron checked along with ferritin. High iron levels can over time cause real problems with the heart and liver. Androgens in general, esp T and N suppress an acute phase reactant called hepcidin from the liver, it controls iron release in the body and uptake from the gut. That's why they used to treat anemia with androgens. 150 mg of T a week is not much but the resulting erythrocytosis varies from person to person. You are a responder, I have the same issue. High HCT increases viscosity and risk of stroke or DVT, another reason to keep it down.