Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Dave's Chemo Journal: June 5, 2012

From round four. 

June 5, 2012 – 1:40 p.m. Number four. Hopefully I am past the halfway point of this process and headed for the home stretch. I only have two more scheduled treatments after today. Then scans from time to time for the next couple of years to make sure there is no cancer in my body.

The last treatment was horrible. I did not realize quite how horrible until I was leaving the hospital on May 15, but I knew then that mistakes were made during the treatment. First, my white blood cell count was probably too low for me to have undergone treatment. It was 2500 on May 15 and that is the cutoff for the doctor to administer treatment. Today the white count was at 3300 and I feel much better. It is amazing the difference 800 blood cells can make.

Secondly, I did not eat during the May 15 treatment, so I was nauseated not only from the medicine but also from the lack of food. I choked something down on the way home, but it was too late. That combined with the low white cell count made for a miserable experience. I went to bed as soon as I got home from the hospital at 4:00 and pretty much slept all night, then kept the same bedtime on the next day. But after two days of primarily sleeping, I was fine.

Today, I feel better than last time. I still have nausea, but it is not out of control. I am tired, but functional. I really dreaded coming for the treatment today because of the experience from last time, but I am doing okay and feeling a little inspired. Maybe the dread will not be so bad for treatments five and six.

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