Friday, my Neutropenic level (white blood cell count) had dropped to 0.35. I'm hoping that it pops back up over the weekend, so that we can stay on schedule with my treatment. We'll check it on Monday. If it's still low, we'll have to postpone treatment for a week to give it time to pop back up.
01 Feb - Monday - Cisplatin/Etoposide/Bleomycin: My white blood cell count crawled up to the fence-ledge of treatability, 0.54. So, I'm happy to report that we decided to stay on schedule with my treatments. I'm happy that we won't delay. For some reason, they want to give me all three drugs today, rather than Tuesday... makes no difference to me. I am feeling well. ; )
02 Feb - Tuesday - Cisplatin/Etoposide: They will check my white cell counts again probably Thursday or Friday. I'm feeling pretty well. This week has not been as hard as the first week of treatment was! I have been blessed! Virtually no fevers or other dangers to speak of! Donna Mae and Joshua have been visiting a lot! Thanks guys! Dennis takes me to the hospital before he goes to work everyday, causing him to miss department conferences etc. I appreciate it!!! Melissa is there to give me a hug and make sure I'm ok everyday, after treatment. Thanks for making a safe place for my chemo'ed body!!
03 Feb - Wednesday - Cisplat/Etop: Good news! My white blood cell count jumped WAY up to 5.4!! That's a good strong count for any healthy individual! It's on the up stroke now. And we can expect it to go back down again before this cycle is finished. However, we are planning to take a special precaution, in order to make sure that my count doesn't drop so low again before the end of the cycle. On Friday, they will give me a shot that stimulates white blood cell production in my bone marrow. No, needles will be entering my bones, thankfully! The shot simply goes under the skin of my stomach... much like a diabetic's insulin shot. The sudden white blood cell production that will start happening in my bone marrow will cause some bone aches and pains, but the nurses have already given me some hydrocodone to deal with that (I also had the option to get Oxycodone... but I opted for the hydro). I'm feeling pretty good today, might even go out to eat tonight or tomorrow! ; )
04 Feb - Thursday - Cisplat/Etop: Ugh, this stuff is wearing me out! I'm very thankful for good company! Donna Mae was able to be there for most of the day once again, and Melissa finally had a day off of classes, so she was there all day too!! Tomorrow is the last day of our long week in Cycle #2! Horrah!
05 Feb - Friday - Cisplat/Etop/Special Shot: I thought the shot would hurt, but it was just a pinch. And I'm not experiencing any of the predicted bone pains yet. Not much to report. I'm totally grateful to just be exhausted. Some of my fellow patients are an inspiration! I hope and believe that I will never experience their pains. Trust me when I say that the grass is far greener on my side. Thank you so much Team Jarid, especially Donna Mae, who has taken every day this week to sit by my side!
[06 Feb - Sat] For those who knew that I could be expecting a rough day today, I'm happy to report that it's not bad so far! I've experienced some aches in the face bones, ribs and hips, but nothing that would make me reach for the pills. ; )
08 Feb - Monday - Bleomycin: My white blood cell count was above normal -over 7.0- so we know that the shot is working! The bone aching isn't fun, but it's manageable really... in fact, I prefer it to the head aches and the recently constant ringing in my ears. The bleo gave me a fever and I almost had to go to the ER. Prayer and everything else came through for me and my fever reduced in time to save me the trip. Horrah! This Thursday, I have an afternoon appointment for some blood tests and a sit down with my Oncologist. I'll let everyone know if anything interesting comes out of that. Geez... it's taking me like 20 minutes to write this... the ringing is really distracting (but I'm told it's a common side effect of the Cisplatin). That's all I've got for now, my friends.
[10 Feb - Wed] Hardly slept all night because of the ringing in my ears/head. Fell to sleep on my back, listening to Melissa and Dennis get ready for work and school. Woke up a couple hours later choking on a nosebleed. Made it to the bathroom without a mess. Threw up all the blood that I had already swallowed. They told me in the beginning that random nosebleeds could be expected during treatment.. but I had forgotten. If I didn't know better, I would think it was this damned ringing making blood come out of my head. I guess I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and get something better than hydrocodone. All the hydro did last night was make the body feel like it lost circulation and the head issues more acute. I'll ask for the oxy tomorrow. People keep saying that my blog is sugarcoated... here's to sharing.
[14 Feb - Sunday] I guess another update is in order. I am feeling much better than I had been feeling last week!! Thank you all for your prayers and thoughts! They are really coming through! I had reached an all time low in my treatment, bone aching, vomiting, nosebleeds, ear ringing, head aches, no appetite, etc. One blessing is that the doctor gave me some oxycodone. It's gives a short burst of pain relief that helps me get to sleep at night. It has no effect on the ear ringing, but it gives me a 4 hour break from everything else, which makes it all all bearable so I can get into a deep sleep and rest peacefully all night. I only take it at night before sleep and it only takes one 5mg tablet. Getting good sleep makes the days much more manageable too! This weekend has been very nice! Thanks all!
16 Feb - Tuesday - Bleomycin: 2.5-3 hours. And thus concludes treatment on cycle #3! Horrah! Things went well at the hospital, slow but good. White blood cell count still within normal ranges, 2.6. I'm feeling good. No fever so far.. and I'm not really expecting a fever. I'm hungry and we're about to go to Claim Jumpers ; ) that makes me happy! The cough seems to have gone away almost completely! Go team!
