Wes gets his blood drawn every Monday and Thursday at 8:00 am. His results from yesterday show that he is now what is called Neutropenic. This is not unexpected; chemotherapy, especially the type that Wes is having, has this effect. This is why chemo patients have to be extremely careful about being around anyone who is sick. Neutropenia is a fancy word for “low on neutrophils”. Neutrophils are a specific type of white blood cell, and part of their job is to fight off infection. A normal Absolute Neutrophil Count (or ANC, as we in the cancer biz call it) is somewhere in the range of 1.8-8.0. Wes’ was 0.13 yesterday.

On the plus side, his Hemoglobin and Hematocrit are amazingly good, which I’m grateful for. This has no bearing on his ability to fight infection, but it shows that his red blood cells are still plentiful and doing their job well. His platelets are falling; again, an expected side effect, specifically for the Etosodmide. If he gets to <30, he will need a transfusion of platelets to help with excessive bleeding. His platelets yesterday were at 57.9. To compare that, last Thursday, his platelets were 142. So, it will be interesting to see where his levels are on Thursday when he is drawn again.

One of the experiences that I am currently dealing with is switching back and forth between my roles as Mother and Healthcare Professional. Clinically, it is fascinating to watch these changes, and the whole process of this battle. As a Mother, it blows. I don’t know that anyone can understand that dichotomy unless you’ve been in both worlds. It’s a strange place to be.

Wes is definitely feeling the effects of chemo now. We have to be on guard for fevers, and if he does get a fever, he has to go to the emergency room for treatment. Getting him to eat is a real challenge now. He just has no appetite, and he’s starting vomiting as well, which just adds to the problem. I know that Primary Children’s is proactive with nutrition as much as possible, so it will be good to get him back down there where he can be more closely monitored at his next chemo infusion appointment.

So far, his hair is still intact. 🙂 When he received chemo with his last cancer, I vividly remember that his hair hadn’t started falling out about 10 days after his first infusion, and we were being interviewed by a local news reporter. She asked about when his hair would fall out. Wes reached up and grabbed a tuft of hair and just pulled it out. It was SO bizarre! I was shocked, and so was he. That night, we had a Happy Bald Day party for him, with balloons, streamers, and a cake. We shaved his head, and Cody shaved his head as well. It was fun. One of my regrets as a mother is that Wes asked if he could draw a blue arrow down his head like The Last Airbender, and I wouldn’t let him. I totally should have. Dang it.

And that’s the latest and greatest. All in all, nothing unexpected, but still no fun. Here’s to hoping for better days ahead!