I vant your blood

If you're one of those generous people who roll up their sleeves and donate blood: thank you. If you're type O positive, an extra merci beaucoup to you. I'm grateful because I need a blood transfusion on Friday to bring my hemoglobin and platelets up to an acceptable level. They're so low, my chemo must be postponed a week.

My appointments at the cancer clinic did not go as I'd hoped yesterday. In fact, the treatment train went careening of its track. My chemo and its timing changed, and I also have new drugs to help prevent vomiting and promote bowel movements. I know the changes are probably for the best, but I was so hoping to release the next wave of ninjas, so I'm disappointed. Now they have to continue training for another week before attacking the tumours.

The first minor roadblock I encountered was during my blood draw. Both lumens in my PICC line were clogged and needed a special drug to clear them. So my five-minute stop at the chemo suite to give blood turned into an hour-long stay. But they're both running free and clear now so they'll be ready for both my blood transfusion and chemo.

During my appointment with Dr. W, he suggested we switch the Carboplatin chemotherapy to Cisplatin. So I'll be getting Cisplatin and Gemcitabine on both weeks one and two, with week three as a treatment vacation. Apparently these two drugs have a synergistic effect - they work well together - so he's recommending their combined infusion both weeks. As well, splitting the dose over two weeks would decrease the potential side effects of kidney and inner ear damage, and increased nausea.

The drug sheet for Cisplatin says hydration is very important and I must drink 10 to 12 one-cup servings of fluid (water, broth, clear soup, clear juice, etc.) the day before and after treatment. In fact, if I can't drink this much fluid, I have to call my nurse. It's that important.

Which is why we have to get this vomiting under control. I haven't been keeping food nor fluids down, and as a result, I feel terrible. My mouth is sticky, my lips are dry and I have a terrible headache. Between being dehydrated and my low blood counts, I am weak, lethargic, shaky and generally feel crappy.

So Dr. W prescribed more Dexamethasone and a drug called Haldol to help control the nausea and vomiting. I took my first doses about 6:30 p.m., but then I vomited four times between midnight and 6 a.m. Hopefully, my body absorbed them before I went on my puking rampage, but there's no guarantee.

I took them again this morning and. knock wood, so far all the Gatorade, water and soup I've consumed has stayed put in my stomach. So hopefully these new drugs are starting to work.

Dr. W also prescribed, Lactulose, a synthetic, non-digestible sugar used to treat chronic constipation. It's a sickly sweet syrup, but if it works, I'm all for it.

I'm so bummed my blood counts aren't cooperating on my very first treatment! This does not bode well for the future. My platelets were 91 (normal is 150 or higher, but may drop as low as 75 during chemotherapy without serious harm). I have unexplained giant purple bruises on my body, blood in my mucous and tiny red and purple dots on my skin. All signs of low platlets.

My hemoglobin was 76. Normal is between 120 and 130, but can drop as low as 80 without serious harm. I'm below 80! Those with low hemoglobin are considered anemic. According to the London Regional Cancer Program website, anemia can cause difficulty concentrating, tiredness, feeling dizzy, headaches, shortness of breath with very little activity, sensitivity to cold/feeling very cold, pale skin, less interest in social pleasure, and feeling down or irritable. Check on all those symptoms.

Dr. W said we may consider using a drug called Eprex to help prevent anemia if I continue to have problems in the future. But of course, using it comes with its own set of precautions. I'll cross that bridge if and when I get to it.

To top it off, my white blood cells are 2.5 (normal is 4.5 to 10) and my neutrophils are 1.0 (normal is 2.5 to 7.5). So my blood work sucks all around. In the meantime, the blood transfusion is the way to boost my hemoglobin and platelets, help me feel better and prepare my body for chemo next Thursday.

I hate this. I hate feeling sick and weak. I hate curling up in a ball on my bed and disengaging from the world, but I feel so terrible, that's all I want to do. I'm so disappointed my treatment is delayed. I'm frustrated because I'm filling with ascities again. I feel so disheartened right now.

Hopefully the blood transfusion helps. I hate being like this.

Tina