Red Cells and White Cells and Platelets, Oh My!

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.6 13-17 v Platelets 10 140-375 v ANC MIA 1800-8300 v When I was about five or six, my dad, who was a private pilot and had grown up building model airplanes before there were model airplane kits, used to take me and my brother to Vic's Hobby Shop in the Hollywood District of Portland. To me the place was like a wonderland. So many model airplanes hanging from the ceiling in such a way as to suggest an aerial dog fight, highly detailed model ships sitting on shelves; I could imagine myself as John Wayne in "Flying Leathernecks,"  or Jeff Chandler in "Away All Boats." It was like a turbocharger for the imag

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.8 13-17 ^ Platelets 19 140-375 v ANC 740 1800-8300 v Once upon a time, I was subject to panic attacks. When a newly remodeled Fred Meyer store opened in Portland decades ago, I stopped by during the Grand Opening. I was not there for the festivities, but because I needed something. I walked in the door and started to feel a little ill at ease. There were a LOT of people there. As I moved in the direction I thought would take me to whatever I was looking for, it took me deeper into the crowd. All at once, I found I was having trouble breathing and all I could think of was to run. I was able to quell the urge to run, but I made a bee-

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.7 13-17 ^ Platelets 26 140-375 v ANC 800 1800-8300 ^ I remember when the Iraq War, sometimes called the Second Persian Gulf War, began in 2003. As the news agencies trained their cameras out of hotel windows in Baghdad, their reporters and correspondents went on and on about what to expect. President George W. Bush had warned Sadam Hussein and the Iraqi government that they were about to experience an attack of "Shock and Awe." When the fighting began, the allied powers began bombarding this ancient city with bombs and artillery fire the like of which had rarely been seen, at least since World War II.  It was shocking,

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7 13-17 ^ Platelets 45 140-375 v ANC MIA 1800-8300 - Have you ever noticed how things change? Phonograph records gave way to 8 Track tapes. Eight track tapes gave way to Tape Cassettes, which gave way to CDs. The great, big cars of the fifties with their fins and huge trunk spaces gave way to smaller, more aerodynamic, more fuel efficient cars. There is a phrase we use to capture these changes: "The end of an era." Sometimes there are good reasons for the abrupt end of an era, like the 1973 gas crunch, when the OPEC nations decided to strangle the oil supply. Suddenly, big, luxurious, inefficient cars were too much of a luxu

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 6.9 13-17 v Platelets 59 140-375 v ANC MIA 1800-8300 v Did you ever have a conjoined twin? No, I don't suppose you did, but then again I don't know that for sure. I am definitely at or approaching the nadir, or bottom of the barrel, as far as blood counts are concerned. This is expected about now. Check out the Box Score for today. My platelets are still hanging in there. Above 50 I consider to be acceptable. If I were home I would be on blood thinners at this level. Still there is a risk of bleeding, bruising, petechiae (tiny red spots on my skin), and other fun things. When they go below 10, I will need to have them replaced

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.6 13-17 ^ Platelets 72 140-375 v ANC 500 1800-8300 v Yesterday, I wrote about a Prize in Every Box, as in Cracker Jack. Today, I am able to give you an example. Last night after I was asleep, I received a text message from my friend Brian, who is also battling AML. He had a high fever at home and was unable to walk, so his wife brought him to the ER around mid-day. The medicos got the fever down, but decided he needed to spend the night at the hospital. The problem with hospital rooms is that there are never enough of them. So, in his text message, Brian wrote, "...they are trying to get a room next to you. So I can talk to you

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.5 13-17 v Platelets 93 140-375 ^ ANC 520 1800-8300 v Cracker Jack. Does anyone eat this stuff anymore? I just looked it up on Amazon. It's still available. I noticed the box says, "Prize inside." My recollection is that, when I was a kid, and we actually used to buy Cracker Jack at the ballpark, the box said, "A Prize in Every Box." So, one of two things have happened. 1) They changed the box. Really? After a mere 70 years? OR 2) My memory fails me. Really? After a mere 78 years? Who knows?  The reason I bring this up is that, as I reflect on Day T+1, I am amazed at how well I feel one day after the transplant. In fact, I am amazed at how well I have felt through this whole process: chemo, radiation (well, that took the starch out of me), transplant

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.9 13-17 v Platelets 83 140-375 v ANC 1040 1800-8300 v As you probably know, the life of a professional baseball player is pretty uncertain. Many a young man who was a high school star with dreams of pitching in the World Series against the NY Yankees (isn't everybody against the Yankees?) finds himself facing some pretty pesky barriers, if he opts for a career in the Big Leagues. I've read stories about guys who virtually never made it out of the minor leagues after spending ten or a dozen years hoping to make it to the "Big Show." That is to say, the Major Leagues, especially the MLB (Major League Baseball). 

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.4 13-17 ^ Platelets 100 140-375 ^ ANC 1330 1800-8300 v One of our favorite "Christmas Movies" is "Holiday Inn," which really is only a Christmas movie in the sense that part of the story takes place at Christmas, and Bing Crosby sings "White Christmas" twice. If you are not familiar with the movie, Bing Crosby plays an entertainer who is tired of the daily grind of multiple shows and all the traveling. He retires and buys a farm, but he soon finds out that farming is way too much work.  Rather than give up the farm, he decides to turn the huge farmhouse into an inn that is only open on holidays. And of