Well, I had the socks scared off of me this last week. We were down to 6 rad treatment days and 1 chemo....very glad to be near the end and the RO congratulating Bill on making it thru 2-a-day hyperfractionated) IMRT without missing any appts. That was last Tuesday AM.
Bill had been puny on Monday and really tired, sleepy, and just generally feeling lousy on Tuesday. He slept the whole day except for our rad trips. That evening, while feeding his last can of supplement to him, I noticed he felt hot. Ut oh! Temp at 101.6. Called the MO who directed us to the ER...he had called ahead and when we arrived were isolated in a room, everyone had to wear masks, etc. His white count was down to 2.2 and his temp up to 102.9. He was admitted early the next morning into a private room (no roomates allowed) and hooked up to all kinds of IV meds and feeding pumps....tubes going everywhere. Wednesday all day, he looked horrible...I was really worried. He could not stay awake, he was confused and not conversing well. I kept thinking, how could he go "south" so fast?? Tests did not reveal where the infection was but docs were certain he had something going on. Proper term for his condition was febrile neutropenia...apparently very dangerous. Everyone entering the room had to wear masks and take precautions. I was the only visitor allowed.

Bill rallied on Thursday night...looked way better and was more alert. He was still tethered to all types of equipment but his fever had gone down and his blood counts came up. He was finally discharged on Saturday. We are crushing antibiotics and putting them thru the peg tube at home. Today he is better than he has been in a while. His pain level is way down and he is swallowing water and Gatorade rather well...go figure. Maybe the antibiotics worked on his mouth and throat sores or maybe that is where the infection was???? We started back with rad treatments today...hopefully finishing now next Monday. MO wants to skip chemo this week but we will see him Thursday for bloodwork.

You better bet I will be checking Bill's temp three times a day now. I had read somewhere on the board that someone can become septic very fast and I now know how fast! Hopefully someone can learn from our experience. I just assumed that Bill's lethargy was due to the stage of his treatments. His body did not feel warm to me earlier in the day but I bet if I had checked, I may have caught this a little earlier. Live and learn...its something new every day.

All I can say is its nice to have him home, alive, and back on track! Deb

DEB<


How scary !!!! I am soo Glad to hear he is doing better now though. I didn't do the chemo and rad thing so not really familair with it..but sounds so scary . I hope all goes well for him and I am glad to hear he is DONE SOON and he be on that road to recovery SOON !!


Shar

Hi, Deb, Glad to hear you have him home again. We had some experience with temp hikes too, and they are very scary, to say the least. One thing I had to get used to during those times was that we needed to chart the temp 30 to 45 minutes after the fever reducing med. was given to see if it was working [if not, we applied cold compresses] and then again within an hour or so. It can cause panic along with sleepless nights. I also learned to really push water and Pedialyte when John had a fever. Stay strong. Amy in the Ozarks

Thanks guys,

Bill is sooooo much better today. Somehow between the break in his treatments (3 days), the antibiotics, and probably lots of prayers from family and friends, he is feeling stronger and less painful than he has in two or three weeks. He is swallowing enough to get a bottle of gatorade down during the day and sipped coffee this am and was ABLE TO TASTE IT! Instead of reclining in his chair, he is working at the computer....amazing! I am so thankful. You better bet Amy, that I am getting lots of water down that tube...2 quarts a day...no small undertaking. I just chart it and try to stay on schedule...feeding and watering every 2 to 3 hours. He had only lost 1 lb since last Tuesday, even with the stay in the hospital.

If all goes well, we will be finished on Monday with rad treatments. Chemo is on hold until we see the MO on Thursday. So, a little "golden sky at the end of this storm." I am fully aware that this is not the end of hard times but I am grateful for a couple of really good days! Deb

Wow, what a scare. I am glad Bill is doing better...and, amazed that he is able to taste things. That's awesome!

I can tell from your message that you are braced for the aftermath. Those first 2 weeks post treatment are tough. I hope it goes easier for you than it did for us.

Although, the great thing is that we are 50 days post-treatment and things are going very, very well.

Good luck!

Deb...just found your post of Sept. 25...SO glad that Bill is doing better now! You know that both of you are in our daily prayers. Hang tough and keep us posted as to Bill's progress.

Lois & Buzz in NC

Thanks Lois,

Saw the MO yesterday for blood counts and a consult. Bill was still doing amazingly well. His pain level almost nil and his energy up. Gunk in his mouth and throat is almost managable. Blood work was very good with WBC at 6.0. MO could not quantify the benefits of one last chemo...obviously another attack on the tumor would be beneficial to some degree but not known if the benefit outweighed the risk of another possible trip to the hospital. Bill thought for a moment and told the doc that he had made the decision to use everything they could throw at him and he wasn't backing off now. So, he sat for his final chemo yesterday (5 1/2 hours.) We are married to tough guys!

Bill had a fairly rough night last night. He was hyped up as usual after his Thursday treatments...couldn't go to sleep and his gut was bothering him...nausea and heartburn. Who knows what the culprit is...he took his last antibiotic yesterday, took the thorizine for hiccups, had a late feeding since we got behind yesterday and then all the chemo. I get so weary trying to figure out what is doing what. I will be happy to be done with the treatments so I know what I am dealing with here! Anyway, he is sleeping now after his AM rad and I am hoping for a quiet weekend of rest and recovery.
Monday is the last treatment day....yea!!

I am so glad to hear Buzz is doing so well with his txs. Keep it up! Did the new sleep med (I think you said Ambien) help him?? The couple of times I have used Ambien, it was wonderful...got to sleep and no hangover! Hope it works for Buzz. Praying for you guys as well....Deb