Hemoglobin 9.5
Platelets 56
WBC 4.4!!!
|Neutrophils| 2.7!!!
Creatinine 1.52
Great news today - my white cell count is in the normal range! Dr. Oran said that she'll discharge me Monday if I eat well over the weekend. Most of my meds will be switched to pills by tonight, I'll just need to keep them down (which shouldn't be a problem, I haven't thrown up in days). I'm super excited but I need to not get my hopes too high. There are a lot of reasons why my discharge could be delayed by a day or two, some of which are out of my control. Still, I can't wait to get home.
I've received a growth factor each night, that's why my counts have returned so sharply. The side effect of this is bone/deep tissue ache (Mitch knows what I'm talking about). So today I have that soreness but less nausea than I've been having. I think I get one last dose of the growth factor tonight. Once it's done it'll take a day or two before the aching stops.
My lunch just arrived: chicken nuggets, tater tots, peaches, and chicken noodle soup. We'll see how this goes...
Happy Birthday Mitch! I didn't get you a gift, unless you want some medical supplies, then I got a whole cart for you... Who couldn't use saline syringes and gauze pads? I hope you do something fun.
13 March 2010
12 March 2010
Day 11
Hemoglobin 9.4
Platelets 36
WBC 2.0
|Neutrophils| 0.7
Creatinine 1.47
I felt a lot better today than I did yesterday. My white cell count is up again and my doctors believe these are Mitch's cells beginning to present. They also said this is a sign I could be discharged soon. That event hinges on four factors:
Platelets 36
WBC 2.0
|Neutrophils| 0.7
Creatinine 1.47
I felt a lot better today than I did yesterday. My white cell count is up again and my doctors believe these are Mitch's cells beginning to present. They also said this is a sign I could be discharged soon. That event hinges on four factors:
- My white cell count continues to rise.
- I start eating and thus don't need the TPN.
- All my IV medications get switched to oral.
- No further complications arise.
11 March 2010
Day 10
Hemoglobin 7.5
Platelets 42
WBC 1.0
|Neutrophils| 0.3
Creatinine 1.62
Received Two Blood Packets
Today I felt exhausted and literally slept until 1930 and when I was up I felt like shit. It is like the feeling you get when you have the flu and your body just feels awful. The heme-onc fellow on service came in and talked to my dad and IRael (while I slept) and he thought I could be feeling this way because my kidneys are finally showing their stress and may not be filtering efficiently, thus giving me the toxic feeling..
My creatinine has slowly been climbing. Dr. Oran (who is now the attending on service, hooray!) says it is because of the cyclosporin (CSA) I am taking. CSA an important anti-rejection drug but is known to be hard on the kidneys. Since my kidneys are already compromised it seems they just cannot handle the stress. Dr. O hopes that I can stay on the drug until at least day 30 (it is just that good of an anti-rejection drug, and during the first month you need your A-team of anti-rejection meds). There are other options, ones with a lower kidney toxicity, but CSA is the gold standard. That being said, my doctors would rather have functioning kidneys than CSA. So if my kidney function got too low they would take me off the CSA before they would dialyze me. IRael told me that the heme-onc fellow also said my dose of CSA is going to be reduced in an effort to relieve the stress.
If I go off CSA the likelihood that I develop graft versus host disease (GVHD) increases, even on other drugs. So we will have to wait and see how this pans out.
I have not really noticed a difference in my level of nausea since that sticker was applied to me. It really has not had a good chance though, since I slept all day today and feel all gross anyway. It has been effective in giving me terrible dry mouth, so at least I know I am receiving the drug.
Platelets 42
WBC 1.0
|Neutrophils| 0.3
Creatinine 1.62
Received Two Blood Packets
Today I felt exhausted and literally slept until 1930 and when I was up I felt like shit. It is like the feeling you get when you have the flu and your body just feels awful. The heme-onc fellow on service came in and talked to my dad and IRael (while I slept) and he thought I could be feeling this way because my kidneys are finally showing their stress and may not be filtering efficiently, thus giving me the toxic feeling..
My creatinine has slowly been climbing. Dr. Oran (who is now the attending on service, hooray!) says it is because of the cyclosporin (CSA) I am taking. CSA an important anti-rejection drug but is known to be hard on the kidneys. Since my kidneys are already compromised it seems they just cannot handle the stress. Dr. O hopes that I can stay on the drug until at least day 30 (it is just that good of an anti-rejection drug, and during the first month you need your A-team of anti-rejection meds). There are other options, ones with a lower kidney toxicity, but CSA is the gold standard. That being said, my doctors would rather have functioning kidneys than CSA. So if my kidney function got too low they would take me off the CSA before they would dialyze me. IRael told me that the heme-onc fellow also said my dose of CSA is going to be reduced in an effort to relieve the stress.
If I go off CSA the likelihood that I develop graft versus host disease (GVHD) increases, even on other drugs. So we will have to wait and see how this pans out.
I have not really noticed a difference in my level of nausea since that sticker was applied to me. It really has not had a good chance though, since I slept all day today and feel all gross anyway. It has been effective in giving me terrible dry mouth, so at least I know I am receiving the drug.
10 March 2010
Day 9
Hemoglobin 8.3
Platelets 26
WBC 0.9
|Neutrophils| 0.4
Creatinine 1.47
Received Platelets
Another day where I had more nausea than usual. I was prescribed a medicated disc that is adhered right behind my ear. Supposibly this will help with motion sickness (my nausea gets worse anytime I get out of bed). It supplies a drug through the skin and is changed every 72 hours. The most common side effect is dry mouth, which sucks because my mouth already feels like a desert. If it works I guess it's worth it.
I'd also like to say how difficult it is to take a picture like the one above without help.
Platelets 26
WBC 0.9
|Neutrophils| 0.4
Creatinine 1.47
Received Platelets
Another day where I had more nausea than usual. I was prescribed a medicated disc that is adhered right behind my ear. Supposibly this will help with motion sickness (my nausea gets worse anytime I get out of bed). It supplies a drug through the skin and is changed every 72 hours. The most common side effect is dry mouth, which sucks because my mouth already feels like a desert. If it works I guess it's worth it.
I'd also like to say how difficult it is to take a picture like the one above without help.
09 March 2010
Day 8
Hemoglobin 8.8
Platelets 23
WBC 1.2
|Neutrophils| 0.5
Creatinine 1.45
Received Platelets
I was very nauseous this morning so I spent it sleeping. It got better as the day went on. I received a bag of platelets early today since my count dropped below three. Otherwise it was a pretty standard day.
Platelets 23
WBC 1.2
|Neutrophils| 0.5
Creatinine 1.45
Received Platelets
I was very nauseous this morning so I spent it sleeping. It got better as the day went on. I received a bag of platelets early today since my count dropped below three. Otherwise it was a pretty standard day.
08 March 2010
Day 7
Hemoglobin 8.8
Platelets 33
WBC 1.1
|Neutrophils| 0.5
Creatinine 1.36
Today was ok. I'm trying to eat more real food but it's difficult. Fruit seems to work well, other things tend to just cause more irritation. I tend to get more nauseous as my stomach gets more full, so I don't know. As long as I'm on TPN I don't need to eat, so I guess I won't push too hard.
Platelets 33
WBC 1.1
|Neutrophils| 0.5
Creatinine 1.36
Today was ok. I'm trying to eat more real food but it's difficult. Fruit seems to work well, other things tend to just cause more irritation. I tend to get more nauseous as my stomach gets more full, so I don't know. As long as I'm on TPN I don't need to eat, so I guess I won't push too hard.
07 March 2010
Day 6
Hemoglobin 9.6
Platelets 55
WBC 0.7
|Neutrophils| 0.1
Creatinine 1.32
My counts have been bouncing around over the past few days - they'll be down one day and up the next. This seems counterintuitive to what should be happening since I've received chemo - shouldn't my counts just be going down at this point? Good question, so I asked my doctor. She explained that the type of transplant I'm having relies on the donor system to, upon implantation, do the work of a strong chemo treatment in eradicating the cancerous marrow cells. The pre-transplant treatments function to weaken my system, making it easier for the donor system to implement. That being the case, the dose of chemotherapy and radiation given to me were relatively weak. Thus, my cells are still dividing. The chemo will eventually cause my numbers to completely drop, but when used in tandem with the growth factor I receive every night (growth factor = drug to make the cells divide = a rise in counts) an erratic downward trend is often seen. I liken it to an engine running out of fuel. It'll sputter a few times before it completely stops.
Right now I'm feeling really nauseous but I felt pretty good for most of the day.
Platelets 55
WBC 0.7
|Neutrophils| 0.1
Creatinine 1.32
My counts have been bouncing around over the past few days - they'll be down one day and up the next. This seems counterintuitive to what should be happening since I've received chemo - shouldn't my counts just be going down at this point? Good question, so I asked my doctor. She explained that the type of transplant I'm having relies on the donor system to, upon implantation, do the work of a strong chemo treatment in eradicating the cancerous marrow cells. The pre-transplant treatments function to weaken my system, making it easier for the donor system to implement. That being the case, the dose of chemotherapy and radiation given to me were relatively weak. Thus, my cells are still dividing. The chemo will eventually cause my numbers to completely drop, but when used in tandem with the growth factor I receive every night (growth factor = drug to make the cells divide = a rise in counts) an erratic downward trend is often seen. I liken it to an engine running out of fuel. It'll sputter a few times before it completely stops.
Right now I'm feeling really nauseous but I felt pretty good for most of the day.
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