Completing treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) can feel like a rollercoaster experience. For some people, treatment may have destroyed the leukemia cells and you may feel excited and relieved to have finished treatment, but at the same time, you might feel stressed worrying about whether the leukemia will come back or not. These emotions are quite common in people who have had cancer. It may take some time before your concerns calm down, but it may help to know that many leukemia survivors have adapted to living with this state of unpredictability and are living their full lives.
While leukemia can be closely monitored and treated, it may never go away completely. For people experiencing this, you may use a variety of therapies or get regular treatments with chemotherapy to help keep the leukemia under control and to relieve symptoms that develop from it. Living with leukemia that does not go away can be very stressful and can cause you to develop feelings of uncertainty. Whether or not the leukemia went away completely, it’s important to make sure you still complete necessary steps to manage your life after AML treatment.
Below are important this to consider during your journey.
Seeing a New Doctor
After your treatment, you may begin seeing a new doctor who is not familiar with your medical history. It’s important to gather the detailed information of your medical background soon after your treatment and provide your new doctor with the details of your diagnosis and treatment. Make sure to keep copies of this information for yourself. Obtaining these details right after treatment is typically easier than trying to get them at some point in the future.
Here is a list of what you will need to provide to your doctor: