For many people with the CLL diagnosis, “watch and wait” is the starting point of their journey. It may last for months or years. During “watch and wait” phase you don’t receive treatment, but you are on active monitoring that entails regular medical appointments and routine testing. Even in the absence of symptoms, there may be a lot going on in your mind during this stage. You may worry about when you will need treatment and how it will affect your life.
Watch & Wait
During this stage many questions might arise:
What do you have to do during this stage?
What are the symptoms that you might need to be aware of?
Why is “watch and wait” the right approach for some people living with CLL?
What do people in “watch and wait” experience?
What can you do to cope better?
Personal Stories
“I am worried about the future, I don’t know what’s coming for me and I don’t know much regarding my own case, what happens next when it will get much worse, what therapy will I get, what treatment. I am not sure whether it is a good or a bad thing that I don’t know, but it stresses me out, for sure it does make me anxious, that I have no knowledge of what’s coming for me.” (Nikole)
“There are moments that you are inevitably thinking of [your diagnosis] and you wonder: “I don’t know what’s coming after”. Not knowing is the worst part. Ι say to myself that I am fine now, but what can it [CLL] cause in the future? Because I don’t know exactly what the outcome will be. (Andrew)
In the beginning my family was shocked, but they didn’t believe me because I didn’t have something serious and I didn’t need treatment. They were thinking that I might have something serious and I lie to them”. (Mike)
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