I had a balloon dilation and stent placed earlier this month (November 6) due to a dominant stricture. I just got my bloodwork results (drawn on November 19). ALP went down from around 1200 to 800, and bilirubin went down from around 6 to 2.1. I don’t like how high the numbers still are. Thankfully I don’t have symptoms at the moment.
My question is, how quickly should the numbers normalize after a stent and dilation? Or is it par for the course with PSC for the numbers to remain high?
It’s different for each patient of course since disease progression varies, but it’s expected for your numbers to come down after ERCP, but don’t expect it to come within the labs normal levels. Once I was diagnosed my numbers never returned to a true normal level till after transplant. I did look at any reduction in my numbers as a new normal and was encouraged that I was feeling better for a time. PSC will give you ups and downs, but just go with the flow and live life to its fullest!
Happy Thanksgiving
Mark
Thank you, Mark. I think I sometimes do waste the good days worrying about the bad days. So that’s a habit I want to break. On the flip side, I’m finding that learning as much as I can about the disease is oddly therapeutic. I don’t know that knowledge gives me much power over the disease itself, but it is an interesting subject. I just need to balance the learning with other activities when I go too far down the rabbit hole.
That is hard to say, but I would have been glad to trade in a 6 bili for a 2.1.
The only element in my bloodwork that really got my doc’s attention was the bilirubin.
That taught me to not sweat the others, although they can seem problematic. But he did not seem interested when my numbers showed anemia. Just his mindset maybe-something he could fix, interested. If not, nope.
But I hope you get a good length of time before your symptoms reappear.
Jeff
Jeff