A Week of Dropping Counts and Scans are Scheduled
- juliasgrace
- Feb 25, 2012
- 2 min read
Tuesday, Julia had scans and her doctor visit. Her counts were down from last week and we knew that would mean another visit to clinic at the end of the week. Julia has had a runny nose and cough (although her lungs sound clear) since January when she went to the hospital with the fever. Dr. Stern ordered an antibiotic for Julia to try to get rid of this lingering sinus issue. Julia’s next CT-scan was also scheduled for Friday, March 2.
Julia had to go back to clinic today to check her counts. She has been a little whiny – a sure sign her counts are dropping. The blood test confirmed our suspicions. Julia’s ANC is 240. Her white blood cells are 1.0 (normal range 5-14.5), hemoglobin 9.2 (normal range 11.5-15.5) and platelets 49 (normal 150-400). Julia’s counts were not quite low enough for a transfusion. She will need to rest this weekend and take it easy. We will head back to clinic on Monday to see if Julia’s counts have started to rebound or if they have dropped lower.
As we drove to clinic today, Julia told me she couldn’t wait until summer. This is a common discussion on the cold winter mornings. Julia always feels cold and she often tells me she can’t wait until summer so she will “warm up”. I turned to Julia, saying coyly, “Why would you want summer to be here?” expecting to get the usual answer. This morning, Julia quickly replied “I can’t wait for summer because I won’t have to get chemo anymore.” Next Friday, March 2, is the big day. We will find out from the scans if Julia’s cancer is gone and her chemo will end. Say prayers, send positive thoughts, and keep Julia in your hearts. The wait will be long, but next week this time we will know if Julia’s treatment will end and summer will begin.