Days 2-4

Since being admitted, my Dad has been battling pneumonia, as confirmed by the chest x-ray. We believe he had this prior to being admitted to the hospital, as the pain of it on his ribs is what prompted him to seek medical attention in the first place. He was treated with antibiotics and is slowly recovering from it.

Our night nurse for the last few days, Krista, made us a calendar to chart the results from the daily blood work and his weight. We follow his Neutrophils, White Blood Cells (WBC), Hemoglobin, Platelets, Potassium, Creatinine and weight in Kilograms. My Dad came into this hospital with 100 WBC (avg. is between 4.0-11.0), and as of yesterday he is down to 0.6! What this means is that the chemo is doing its job... killing everything. HOPEFULLY killing the cancer! On day 3 his platelets were low, meaning, the ability to form clots was low, as platelets give blood its "stickiness" (that's a real medical term by the way). To treat this, they gave him Fresh Frozen Plasma (FFP) through his central line, and Vitamin K orally, to get his platelets back to a level we'd like to see them at.

The doctors and nurses stress the importance of good oral health, as that is one of the main routes of infection. I guess Jer's investment in my schooling is paying off for once. (For those of you who don't know, I am just about to start my last semester in dental hygiene college) I wonder if my school will give me extra credit for this?

Another important daily routine is walking. One nurse had suggested a goal of 3 walks a day. With Kelly or I walking by his side, he is meeting this goal.

Still waiting for the bone marrow results to come back.