Photo taken 9-5-09

He's close to being bald. We will shave it off when get home.

It just looks messy right now.

9-5-09

Update from this morning. ANC= 20. It is almost zero 0. It means Chase is very neutropenic. He cannot fight infections, if any. They will still keep us in the hospital.

What is neutropenia?
"Neutropenia" is a condition in which the number of neutrophils in the bloodstream is decreased. Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell also known as polymorphonuclear leukocytes or PMNs. Neutropenia affects the body's ability to fight off infections.

How is neutropenia defined?
The white blood cell count (WBC) is the number of white blood cells in a volume of blood. The normal range for the WBC varies slightly among laboratories but is generally between 4,300 and 10,800 cells per microliter or cubic millimeter (cmm). The WBC can also be referred to as the leukocyte count and can be expressed in international units as 4.3 x 109to 10.8 x 109 cells per liter. The percentage of the different types of white blood cells in the WBC is called the WBC differential.
The absolute neutrophil count (ANC) is determined by the product of the white blood cell count (WBC) and the fraction of neutrophils among the white blood cells as determined by the WBC differential analysis. For example, if the WBC is 10,000 per microliter and 70% are neutrophils, the ANC would be 7,000 per microliter.
An ANC of less than 1500 per microliter (1500/microL) is the generally accepted definition of neutropenia. Neutropenia is sometimes further classified as:
mild if the ANC ranges from 1000-1500/microL,
moderate with an ANC of 500-1000/microL, and
severe if the ANC is below 500/microL.

9-4-09 The Plan

Today, were told that we will be released on the following conditions:
1. No fever in 48 hours
2. ANC count is on rising trend


We got the first condition resolved. Just waiting for his ANC to go up.
However, when we received his ANC today. ANC=100. It was 20 pts. lower than yesterday.

9-3-09 Fever and Hospital admission

Chase had a low grade fever last Wednesday, 9/2. It was about 99.6 or so in the afternooon & about 100.7 at night. His temp was was hovering at that range. But, not higher. I called the hem/onc doctor and advised us to go to the ED. I took his temp again after preparing our things for the hospital. It went down to 99. So, we decided not to take him in.

It was the same scenario on Thursday. The hem/onc nurse called me at work & asking about Chase because they received a note from the doctor last night. I explained that we did not take him to the ED because the fever went down. By the time I came home, his temp is slowly rising. From 99.6 to the low 100's. We took him to the ED and his temp at the Triage was 100.2. Still, borderline fever. They consider 100.4 as fever.

We got to the ED room by 9:30 pm. I knew it will be a long night. Our average ED stay is 4-5 hours. I was thinking that we'll be home by 2ish after antibiotics. They took his vitals again & his temp was higher at 101.2. We were patiently waiting in the room & shortly before 1 am. We were told that Chase will be admitted due to his ANC=120.

We stayed at the ED while waiting for the room. We got to our room , 425 West BMT unit, at around 5 am. Chase needs to be isolated due to his counts and VRE. There were no available rooms either in the West or East wing. So, we were placed in the BMT unit.

Date picture was taken: 9/3/09

Lost more hair

Photos

Picture taken with Shaun in the car after the 8/31 appt. at CHLA. Chase's face is now really round.

You can now see his bald spots

8/31 Labs and hair update

Actual date: 8/31/09

We went to CHLA in the morning for his labs. His counts checked out ok. All values were lower. But, still ok. No transfusions needed.

WBC: 2.11K/ul
HGB: 11.5 g/l
PLTE: 123K/ul
ANC: 830

We are scheduled for a Lumbar Puncture on Tuesday, Sept. 8 and Chemo & Dr.'s appt on Wednesday, Sept. 9.

We stopped the steroids last Sunday (8/30). But, the side effect lasted the whole week. This round of steroids was really tough. Chase ate like there's no tomorrow. This whole week, He woke up in the middle of the night and requested for food. He woke up at 5 am on Tuesday, 3:30 on Wednesday, 1:30 on Thursday, 12:30 am last Friday morning. He does not go back to sleep until 6 or 7 in the morning. I was dead tired. I was a zombie at work.
By Friday, his face and belly just blew up. His hair started to fall off as well. It fell out in clumps. So, we decided to give him a haircut last Sunday.