My Story
I am now in my fifties, and live in Central England. Primary Thrombocythaemia was diagnosed in myself after a routine blood test in December 1996. The natural thing for me to do was find out as much as I could about this condition, and why I have it. My Haematologist at the time (a very nice man too) could only tell me what it could do to me and how, by means of drugs, it could be controlled. The medical profession does not know, or will not say, what the cause is - hence my research.
The information gathered from the specialists, and on the internet, only served to scare me into a depression, worrying about what could happen if I didn't take the drugs. However, I was also worried about what could happen if I did take them, due to the possible side effects. The expression 'Between a rock and a hard place' seems very appropriate here. My decision was to leave the drugs, and try to find either the root cause and/or a natural solution.
My depression has now been overcome, and I have gone back to my old way of taking life as it comes, not worrying too much about what is around the corner.

Personal Trials
I have tried many things to reduce my Platelets, in the hope of identifying the cause - could it be a dietary deficiency? or an exposure to substances that cause the body to react in this way?
A methodical approach to testing has been achieved by recording my Platelet Count from day 1, and notating what action was taken on the previous three months.

This is what I have tried so far -

• Having my Amalgam fillings replaced.
• Multi Vitamin and mineral supplements.
• Sulphur tablets.
• Kelp tablets.
• Anti-oxidants.
• Apricot kernels - For Vitamin B17 anti Cancer properties.
• Vegetarian diet.
• Low Carbohydrate diet.
• Blood group diet - Similar to veggie (for my Blood type), but harder to follow.
• Body purge - To get rid of any parasites that may be lurking inside the body.
• Change of personal hygiene products (soap, toothpaste, etc.) - To reduce exposure to 'dangerous' additives.
• Glucosamine Sulphate/Cod Liver Oil.
• Chlorophyll Supplement, plus Echinacea (in a herbal tea)
• Detox - Redox water filter fitted to remove Chlorine and other chemicals from the water coming into my house, plus a reverse osmosis system to take out anything left for drinking and cooking water. Reduced intake of tea and coffee. Reducing foods and drinks packaged in plastics in case of dioxin contamination (this was really difficult, as it seems almost everything comes in plastic).
• Turmeric capsules - Reported to be good for blood and Platelet issues.
• Apricot Kernels and Kiwi Fruit (as Aspirin replacement).
• The 'Beer Challenge' - A dark beer daily. Undertaken following reports that there may be some benefit to the blood.
• The 'Red wine Challenge' - Variation on the above!
• Pycnogenol capsules - Couldn't stay on them long enough to establish anything, apart from they gave me headaches and very itchy legs.
• Magnesium Supplement - Reported to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke + Lab tests on Hamsters revealed a reduced magnesium content in their diet resulted in an increased Platelet count.
• Saw Palmetto
• Natto (fermented Soya) - Platelet count reduced, but not a significant amount. Had been trial free for the previous blood test (Oct 2012), and that also revealed a lower count - see chart
• Natto + Magnesium - Only able to take 1 Natto capsule/day, as they appeared to give me joint pain. No decrease in Platelets recorded.
• Beetroot Juice - This was limited to six weeks due to the risky nature of the trial (Beet is known to increase Platelets). After a slight increase over this time, I thought it prudent to cease.

There is no evidence of any form of success with these trials, although my counts have fluctuated over the years, and are currently decreasing at a slow rate, but with no apparent reason.

A spreadsheet has been produced showing the results.
Click the following link for my Platelet count chart - The dips cannot be attributed to any trial, this is proven by halting or changing the trial for a period of around three months prior to a blood test, then restarting ready for the next test after a blood test (my blood is drawn every few months).
A series of charts have been produced to compare the complete set of full blood count results;

FBC-all shows all of my FBC results on one chart. It's a bit too busy to make any sense of, so...
FBC results plots Platelets individually against the other blood counts.
Trend Comparison all the linear trends on one chart. Shows how a linear trendline could give a false impression - Compare this with the polynomial trends on the FBC results charts.

Results of my trials can be discussed/commented on, by means of the Forum.

If anyone out there has had any success in combatting this condition, please let me know so that I can pass the word. Contact me via the forum (I am 'markejon')

Also my thanks go out to all that have participated in my research, although I need many more participants to establish any trends. The data analysis is regularly updated, so please call back to check progress.

DATA ANALYSIS

THROMBOCYTHAEMIA DISCUSSION FORUM

WORK RELATED EXPOSURES

WHEN DID IT START?

MEJ HOMEPAGE