Saturday, April 25, 2009

Thanks Skippy


Nice comment on yesterday's blog posting. Thank you. I call that good medicine.

Had bloodwork yesterday and a visit with the Nurse Practitioner. The white counts are up. Platelets are up to 37 from 13 on Monday. They need to be at 100 to have the next chemo treatment. FYI: Normal platelet counts need to be between 140 and 415. There is no sign of fatigue or anything if platelets are down. Abnormal platelet counts are primarily detected through bloodwork.

There will be bloodwork on Monday when I meet with the doctor. They will also do bloodwork on Wednesday before chemo. The Nurse Practitioner said that the Neulasta treatment didn't work well with this latest chemo. So, I'll discuss with the doctor what plan B will be for next time. The Nurse Practitioner also said that I shouldn't be concerned about the platelets coming up. She felt very confident that they will come back up.

If they aren't up by Wednesday, they'll reschedule for the following week - adding another week to the process. Today, that doesn't bother me anymore. We will cure no NHL before it's time. Seriously, rushing through this just to get it over, serves no purpose. All of that anxiety has been packed in a box and put in my mental attic. I'll pull it out of the attic if I need it. Otherwise, it may come up missing some day.

I did ask the Nurse Practitioner today if I could give her name as a contact for anyone facing cancer and needing some direction. She said it would be OK. Feel free to contact me if you ever need that resource. She's a dedicated professional with a good soul. It took awhile, but I have her (and a few of the others in the clinic) calling me by my first name. MR. Frazee is my dad.

I did get some amazing cookies today from Bo's mom. I got some Key Lime cookies and some chocolate chip cookies. We have never discussed my affection for chocolate chip cookies, so how DID she know to send them? Simple. Bo told her, "EVERYBODY likes chocolate chip cookies."

Bo got to go to PE class on Thursday and loved it. He had to skip his treatment on Friday due to a complication - so he was happy about it. They also got some good news about his summer activities. If you haven't visited his journal, it is: www.caringbridge.org/visit/bobaker . You may need to copy and paste this link into your browser if the direct link doesn't work.

My friend Jay is hanging in there and actually felt energetic enough to walk several blocks to his local Ben & Jerry's the other day. His attitude is good. He still has a tough road to travel.

I don't have any more updates on Hunter.

The best days are in front of us.

1 comment:

skippy said...

First. Aw shucks. Jes rootin' for ya.

I here chicken soup stimulates the production of platelets. Or was that bowlets?