Hemophilia 24/7 - a Column by Cazandra Campos-MacDonald

Routine blood draws are a necessity when you have an active inhibitor. I try to get Caeleb’s lab work done at least every two months, and the results will give us his Bethesda unit (BU) and half-life status. Having a zero BU is ideal but that alone does…

It amazes me how people with a bleeding disorder just go with the flow, living their lives and accepting their routines as normal. They forget that what they do on a regular basis is nothing short of phenomenal. A little boy self-infusing is an amazing sight to see.

Changes are happening in the bleeding disorder community like I never imagined. New product after new product has hit the marketplace, each one claiming to be the best available. They all have great claims, with less infusing being the No. 1 draw. But how do you know if…

My youngest son, Caeleb, begins middle school this year. He is super-excited about starting the sixth grade, but I am not nearly as enthusiastic. He’s already thinking about new friends, changing classes, and joining the Pokémon club. I am worried about bullies in the hallways, his lack of…

Two likes. No comments. Just. Two. Likes. A friend, who has a son with hemophilia, told me about her daughter’s new diagnosis unrelated to bleeding disorders. She was scared and unsure of what to expect for her daughter, and as an experienced “hemo mom,” she immediately found a…

When my oldest son, Julian, started elementary school in 2001, I was encouraged to proceed with a 504 plan for his protection. Section 504 refers to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that guarantees the needs of students with disabilities are met in school. I was surprised when I…

When you live with a bleeding disorder, life can sometimes seem to be nothing but chaos. Just as one bleed seems to heal, another one begins. You start to infuse a factor at closer intervals, and before you know it, you are setting your alarm for factor dosing…

More than 21 years ago, when my first child was born and diagnosed with severe hemophilia A, he was very fortunate to have first-generation clotting factors available. These were concentrates stabilized with albumin that were very safe. When the factor was reconstituted with sterile water, a seemingly…

Whenever I hear the phrase, “Knowledge is power, ” I think back to the animated children’s television show Schoolhouse Rock. I loved how fun, catchy songs taught kids how bills are passed, the preamble to the Constitution, and my favorite tune, Conjunction Junction. Every episode started with an intro stating,…

When my oldest son was diagnosed with severe hemophilia at birth, I found myself catapulted into a world I never knew existed. I became part of the bleeding disorder community, like it or not. I slowly began to realize that this community was filled with passionate, well-educated people who knew…