Hello!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sign In Register
Please read the house rules and keep this community safe for yourself and others.

Memory loss - anyone else had problems?

Dieseldrinker62Dieseldrinker62
in General advice
One thing I was conscious of during my treatment was forgetting things. I can't remember when it started and it was possibly before I was diagnosed with Leukaemia, but I did notice that certainly during treatment I was terrible at remembering things, names in particular.

I suffered from dizzy spells before I was diagnosed, so I think my brain function was perhaps affected somehow and maybe the memory problems stemmed from that.

Things seem to have improved now, although as I'm approaching 50 I guess my mind is not as sharp as it was anyway, but I wondered whether anyone else had experienced any difficulties, either as an apparent consequence of their illness, treatment, or transplant.

Steve
HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam

Comments

  • giorgissimogiorgissimo
    There are a few times I've not been able to find a word I was looking for, but don't tell my boss as I'm a sub-editor and finding the right words is meant to be my forte!

    I've usually put it down to fatigue rather than anything more permanent, but like you I think I had such moments before getting ill, anyway – although they seem a bit more common at the moment. I always blame 'chemo brain', even though the chemo was a good couple of months ago now...
    HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam
  • Amy_AnthonyNolanAmy_AnthonyNolan
    Hello,

    We saw this really ineteresting article on the BBC today about a new study on memory and concentration amongst 16 to 50 year old cancer patients. The preliminary results of this new research are out later this week and seem to confirm the link between memory loss, concentration problems, and treatment for cancer.

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-28163631?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter#

    I hope you find it interesting!
    Amy
    HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam
  • Dieseldrinker62Dieseldrinker62
    edited July 2014
    That's an interesting article Amy, and sounds just like I experienced, particularly the bit about having trouble finding the right word. I have to say I don't seem to be too bad now that my treatment has finished but during treatment I struggled with my memory. I was terrible at remembering names!

    I was having my photophoresis the other day and there was a patient in there having his own stem cells collected. Apparently he's having treatment for a lymphoma which has affected his memory. |The poor old guy seemed quite confused at times, but by all accounts his memory should become better once he has his treatment and his stem cells returned afterwards.

    Different to my condition (ALL) I know, but I was interested to learn that memory can be affected by these blood cancers.
    HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam
  • ClaireClaire
    hi there prior to my transplant i used to get my words mixed up quite a lot, i used to go to say a word, but what came out just didn't make sense, my family used to call them claireisms. Now when i look back, it was probably due to anaemia, lack of oxygen to the brain as my haemoglobin was so low at 4.0. Although i do still have them, they're not as frequent. I also struggle with remembering names.
    HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam
  • Dieseldrinker62Dieseldrinker62
    My memory is getting better but I still have times when I just can't think of the word I need, which can be embarrassing at times. I sometimes struggle with names too and often find myself watching my son play rugby and shouting the wrong names at his team-mates!

    Steve
    HelpfulInsightfulSupportiveLOLSpam
Sign In or Register to comment.