Last week was brutal. Multiple trips to the clinic, too many needles, zero energy and joint pains. The last two clinic visits were on a wheelchair, mostly because of joint pains. This past two weeks were great on paper; the blood counts were near perfect. In the last test, her Hemoglobin was 11, Platlets were… Read More Slow painful week
Last week was the last chemo of Phase 3. Rachana will undergo a bone marrow biopsy next week to make sure there are no traces of Leukemia and she is still in remission. The bone marrow biopsy marks the end of Phase 3. Phase 4 (the last phase) will start the week after next, if her blood counts… Read More Phase 3 chemos end
We got this email from her doctor the other day “great news! the chromosome analysis is back for rachana’s day 29 bone marrow biopsy. they are totally normal. so all the extra copies that we saw at the time of diagnosis are gone, indicating a nice/deep remission.” So, even with a thorough scan they cannot see any… Read More Medical professionals & Organic food
Diarrhea is now under control after a day of mayhem. But sore throat/ulcer is not going anywhere. She is having discomfort much deeper in her throat and the doctors say it’s likely that the ulcers are not just in the mouth but perhaps through her entire GI tract. She had a reasonable breakfast but lunch… Read More Day 22 – Chemo dose 4 of 4
This morning Rachana went from 2 days of constipation to 10 hrs of diarrhea. They had given fiber supplements and two other meds to handle constipation and then Rachana asked for a suppository, which triggered the diarrhea. In talking to another nurse, she said usually they don’t give suppositories to patients who have low neutrophils (ANC),… Read More Day 21 – The symptoms pendulum swings wildly
Mouth sores continued to be the thing to manage today. She is taking an anti-fungal chewable and a gel that is applied directly on the sores. The gel does provide temporary pain relief and mildly numbs the area. So we are applying the gel 10 mins before a meal. She is eating a little less… Read More Day 15 – 3rd round of chemo
When can Rachana come home? Well it depends, but ANC is a key number. The blood is mostly made up of red blood cell (RBC), white blood cells (WBC) and platelets. RBC supply oxygen to the organs, WBC fight infection and Plaletes prevent bleeding by helping the clotting process. Leukemia is a disease where the body produces… Read More Day 11 – Keeping our eyes on ANC
The second round of chemo is definitely having a cumulative effect. Rachana was already tired last night after the chemo and this morning’s diarrhea and vomiting made it worse. Throwing up and diarrhea beats down the best of us, so you can imagine her condition. The doctor says this is expected as the side effects of chemo… Read More Day 9 – The feeling better clock resets
Words have meaning – but meanings change with information. Growing up, if the lead actor or actress in our movies has cancer, you are aware of the imminent plot twist. Cancer had a meaning, a pretty strong one. But we now know that most cancers are curable. That is one of the first things our doctors in North Hills Hospital and… Read More Day 8 – ’twas a busy day
Dr. Vusirikal had some great news this morning (Apr 2). She said Rachana had walked in with around 17% of leukemia in her blood (not to confuse with the 76% of leukemia within her WBCs) and this morning it’s down to 0.9%, that in 4 days! Now I’m no mathematician but I’ll say that’s a pretty… Read More Day 4 – Good news today
Rachana's recovery from Leukemia 