Red Cells and White Cells and Platelets, Oh My!

I had intended to publish this message yesterday, May 8, 2025, which was the first anniversary of my successful bone marrow stem cell transplant. My present for having arrived hale and healthy at what I am variously calling my “other birthday,” “ John Dillinger’s birthday ,” or “the first day of the rest of my life”  was that I received another bone marrow biopsy (BMBx). It was number 13 or 14 in a long string of BMBx. Now, BMBx is not a big deal. It takes about 30 minutes, is done with local anesthetic, and results in a tiny hole in the skin over my pelvis. On the other hand, the clinician, in this case Michelle Arnold, NP, has me premedicate with a couple of oxycodone (opioid pain reliever) tablets and an Ativan (sedative) tablet an hour before the procedure.  You may think me odd, but I actually kind of look forward to these appointments. The primary reason is that Michelle has been a big part of my care team for the past four years. She is like a dear sister, a trusted the...

  “We do more before 9AM than most people do all day.”   (Click to view ad) I thought of that iconic line from a recruiting ad for the US Army, that aired back in the 1980s, this morning. Our neighbors, who snow-bird in Arizona every winter, are coming home today. These people have been so good to us since we moved into our current home six years ago. And we look for opportunities to do nice things for them.  Jill and I are usually out of bed by around 5AM, although this morning I slept in a bit. We spent time together this morning checking email, Jill writing letters to her brother and our daughters, as she does every morning, and I doing my morning crossword and a few other online games. We had a little breakfast, got dressed and then got busy.  We had planned to prepare a meal for Tom and Debbie, so they wouldn’t have to go grocery shopping before they could have dinner. Jill got busy making lasagna, while I prepared for a painting project we have planned for...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 12.9 13-17 ^ Platelets 186 140-375 ^ ANC 3740 1800-8300 ^ Ferritin 1311 My goal <1000 ^ CD4 Cells 209 My goal > 200 v Vicissitude. This is a word I know well but don’t use in conversation much.  I like the sound of it, but Jill often tells me I use too many words with which some people are not familiar. In case you are not conversant with “vicissitude,” it reminds me of the old joke about the elevator operator who, when asked how he liked his job, said, “It has its ups and downs.”  Here’s a little quote from Merriam-Webster.com: "Change is not made without inconvenience, even from worse to better," wrote British theologian Richard Hooker in the 16th century. That observation may shed some light on  vicissitude , a word that can refer simply to the fact of change, or to an instance of it, but that often refers specifically to hardship or difficulty brought about by change. To survive "the vicissitudes of life...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 12.2 13-17 ^ Platelets 176 140-375 ^ ANC 3470 1800-8300 v Ferritin 1060 My goal <1000 v CD4 Cells 240 My goal > 200 For most of our marriage, Jill and I have perpetuated a tradition (habit?) that I brought into our union. Once upon a time in the mid 1970s, I had a side hustle working for a professor at my dental school alma mater, the University of Oregon Dental School (UODS)*. My main gig was trying to establish a private dental practice in the suburbs of Portland. I had been a top student in dental school, but I had labored under the false illusion that learning to do dentistry well was the primary requisite to executing a successful business delivering dental care. Little did I know at the time that knowing virtually nothing about business practices might hamstring my attempts to keep a business afloat, no matter how good the product of said business might be.  And that brings me back to the side hustle. During the phas...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 11.5 13-17 v Platelets 161 140-375 v ANC 3610 1800-8300 v Ferritin 1121 My goal <1000 v CD4 Cells 240 My goal > 200 ^ Well, well, well. At first glance the Box Score looks a little disappointing, and to be honest, it is. On the other hand, it is quite easily explained. Two weeks prior to these labs, I had my first Therapeutic Phlebotomy, or in other words, I had a pint of the red stuff drawn out of my circulatory system. One would therefore, I suppose, expect that blood count...

BOX SCORE Hemoglobin 13.1 13-17 ^ Platelets 192 140-375 ^ ANC 3850 1800-8300 ^ Ferritin 1231 My goal <1000 v CD4 Cells 192 My goal > 200 v The observant reader will immediately notice that there have been additions to the Box Score. Of course, I didn't need to say that, because all of my readers are intelligent, observant, witty individuals. That's why I hardly need to mention that I introduced a new word to the lexicon in the post titled "Zeugma ." Therefore, today I am having a Pop Quiz. To Wit: Pop Quiz Answer the following multiple choice que...