And Away We Go

Veritable lazy susan full of drugs and blood products!

Here we go

Andrew was admitted to Albany Med yesterday for Round 3, "A" cycle.  When we saw the doctor in the morning, she said his hemoglobin count was very low -- 7 (normal counts are 13-17).  We knew he was having a hard time rebounding from the B cycle, but he was feeling relatively good yesterday -- I can only imagine what the counts must have been last week when he felt terrible -- yikes!  Anyway, the doctor ordered 2 units of blood for him, and said that between cycles he would need to have his levels checked.  He received the blood last night, and today they gave him an additional 2 units, as well as starting the chemo drugs.  "A" cycle is a little crazy, in that he gets many, many things at once.  They start the day with a cup full of pills -- antivirals, benedryl, allopurinol (to protect the kidneys), anti-nausea drugs.  Then they start the blood products, IV rituxan (antibody wonder drug), then fluids, mesna (more kidney protection), and 2 chemo drugs, decadron and cyclophosphamide.  Phew.

We got to peek at notes in his chart yesterday -- it was a little disconcerting, reliving those early weeks, and reading about how dreadful and widespread his cancer was (plus a lot of stuff we didn't understand).  But we also read this -- Current Status:  partial remission.  So, hey -- we thought that sounded pretty good after only 2 treatments!!

Just a side note -- if you haven't given blood in awhile and are blessed with good health, please trot over to your local blood bank and give some up!  It really is a lifesaver.  xoxo

L