Red Cells and White Cells and Platelets, Oh My!

Today is the anniversary of the eradication of my cancer. No, unfortunately, my leukemia has not been declared to have been eradicated. I'm referring here to my colo-rectal cancer, which was treated surgically 26 years ago today. Some days after the surgery, I was seen by an oncologist who told me that the surgery was apparently successful, since no sign of the cancer was found in the many lymph nodes that were removed during surgery. When I asked him whether I would need radiation therapy or chemotherapy, he said, "Well, I could do either or both, if you like, but I have no reason to believe that would be of any benefit." That was good enough for me. I told him I would just as soon not have either, if there was no benefit.  So, here I am 26 years and countless colonoscopies later, free of colo-rectal cancer. Now if I were a big league baseball player, I would say that batting .500 would be good enough, but in real life, my goal is to be batting a thousand, where it comes...

No, you are not on the wrong blog! I changed the picture in the header. The other one was kind of drab and depressing. Maybe that's how I was feeling when I started this blog. I think this one is cheerier and kind of fits the subject matter. Let me know what you think.

It's funny how anxiety can sneak up on you. Today was Bone Marrow Biopsy (BMBx) day. This is the third time I have had this procedure done. The procedure itself is what I would call a non-event. They use a bit of lidocaine to numb the skin over the crest of the pelvic bone. Once that is done they go back in with more lidocaine and kind of soak the surface of the bone. The biopsy itself amounts to drilling a hole through the bony cortex and into the marrow space. This procedure is done with a specially designed instrument.  The instrument consists of a tube with a cutting edge on one end and a handle on the other end, allowing the operator to twist the blade through the cortical bone. Once the tube has been inserted to the proper depth, a central rod is  removed from the instrument, leaving a hollow canula, through which a sample of marrow tissue is withdrawn with a syringe. Michelle, the NP who did my biopsy today, said the sample looks like rich red blood, although she didn'...

Sometimes, you just have to wait. I last met with Dr. Waugh, my oncologist, on November 8, 2021. That was the day I checked out of Club Sunnyside for the final time after completing all of my HiDAC chemotherapy rounds. On December 4th, I had a consultation with Dr. Cook, the oncologist who specializes in bone marrow transplants (BMT) at OHSU. At that appointment, we learned that a suitable donor for BMT was not found in the worldwide database. Dr. Cook told us that day that she would consult with Dr. Waugh about where to go next with my treatment.  Well, today was the day we had a consultation with Dr. Waugh to discuss the way forward. Unfortunately, due to current Covid19 protocols, Jill was not able to accompany me into the meeting, be she was able to be part of the festivities via phone. Dr. Waugh had some good news and some other news. Whether or not the other news turns out to be good, bad or indifferent will have to wait until after I have another bone marrow biopsy (BMBx). T...

Oh, my! How the time goes by. I hadn't realized how long it has been since my last post. We had a call this morning from our financial advisor to go over some planning for the coming year. He asked how I am doing, to which I replied, "I'm doing great; and you?" Well, he wasn't buying it. He said, he is doing well, but he questioned the veracity of my claim to be doing "great." Wayne was one of three people who came to the hospital to pray with and for us when I was first diagnosed. The other two were our pastor and a dear friend from dental school days, who is also the owner of the condo where Jill stayed for most of the days that I was hospitalized for consolidation chemotherapy.  But really, at the moment, I am doing great. My last lab report showed all my blood counts "within normal limits" (WNL), except for my red blood cells and hemoglobin, which are essentially the same issue. Even my hemoglobin was at 95% of the low end of being WNL. I f...

Timing is everything. I posted on Monday that we had had a lovely drive in the country on Sunday. What I didn't mention is that we took the pickup. Now "Black Beauty" has not had much driving in the past seven months. We have taken her out for a couple of drives over the past 4-5 months with Jill at the wheel, but mostly she has sat in the garage. I sometimes imagine her weeping quietly, since she hasn't had an opportunity to pull the trailer or haul a load of bark dust.  So, when we boarded her for our Sunday drive, I put the key in the ignition and gave it a twist. There was some kind of chattering noise, but no activity from the starter. I was surprised, because I have had a battery charger hooked up for some time. Fortunately, we have a portable battery jumper for just such occasions. It did the trick, but not without some difficulty. Once the engine was going, ol' Black drove like a champ.  When we got home, I reattached the battery charger. Now, during the i...

Today is lab test day, and the results are good today. All of my blood counts are in the normal range, except for red blood cells. So, today is a good day.  In fact, this past week or more has been like a new leash on life. I have been doing some projects around the house. I have been driving here and there. In fact yesterday we went for a drive around the countryside. It was a gorgeous day with a cloudless sky and the temperature was around fifty degrees.  We headed north from Dallas toward Perrydale, a very small village that serves many in the farming community, primarily by means of a school system that is highly regarded. People put their names on a waiting list in hopes of securing a place for their children in Perrydale schools. Other than the school buildings and a few homes and a small church building, there is not much to Perrydale. All of these buildings are clustered together near the intersection of the two roads that cross in the village, Perrydale Rd. and Bethel...

 Just  a quick update. If you read my previous post titled Life's Little Mysteries , you may recall that I was disappointed in my labs from last Monday. In particular, my absolute neutrophil count (ANC) was very discouraging, because it had plummeted over the course of the previous three blood tests from 2690 to 1160 (normal range is 1800-8300). In fact, it was nearing the level where I would need to resume taking anti-biotics, which carry risk of allergic reaction, and anti-fungals, which are hard on the liver. To be precise, one week ago today, my ANC was 1160. At 1000, I go back on the meds.  So, I was keenly interested in today's result. I am proud to announce that my ANC today is 2940!! My hemoglobin has also increased to 11.9 (92% of low normal). Hemoglobin, which is present in red blood cells (RBC), as you will no doubt recall, is the protein that carries oxygen to the body's tissues. Pretty important. RBCs are the slowest to regenerate of the blood elements, so it...

Life must be hard! Every year at this time, I hear myriad people giving thanks that last year is over and that we get a "new start." And I am one of them. Last year was hard in many ways. We started the year still being bombarded by the fallout from a pandemic that had begun a year earlier. Millions were unemployed, thousands were suffering from the Covid virus. There was political upheaval as a new president attempted to undo on his first day in office everything that his predecessor had done in the previous four years. Half way through the year, I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). And the remainder of the year, for me, involved fighting for my life against an enemy I can't even see. Five rounds of chemotherapy later, I am here. I am recovering. I am feeling better, although I am currently back in quarantine as my immune system is once again flagging. The oncology team assures me that this current set back is all part of the game, but it is getting harder ...