Friday, December 23, 2011

D+10 — Counts!

At this point, it's all about the counts.

My white blood cell count (WBC) has been essentially zero since my last round of chemo, as expected. The WBC is normally between 4000 and 10,000, and I need those white blood cells to fight infections. On D+8, they went from zero — listed as <0.1, because WBC is measured in thousands — to 0.1 (100). Yesterday, D+9, the counts were 0.2, and today, 0.6. They increase exponentially for a while, so they should reach the normal range in a few days. 

In addition to the WBC, the other noteworthy number is ANC (absolute neutrophil count). Neutrophils are a subset of WBC. In this case, we're looking for 500, the minimum value for being able to fight infection on my own. Above 1500 is normal. We haven't been measuring this yet, since there haven't been enough white blood cells to take a subset. I bet we measure ANC from now on.


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10 comments:

  1. Jeff RubinDecember 23, 2011 at 11:11 PM

    'Bout time...

    JNR

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  2. laurenDecember 24, 2011 at 5:54 AM

    Wonderful. The best Christmas present this year!

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  3. AnonymousDecember 24, 2011 at 9:29 AM

    Fabulous news! I hope you are feeling better fast as well with your counts on the way back!! Go neutrophils go!

    Deborah

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  4. The OneontansDecember 24, 2011 at 9:46 AM

    Excellent! We'll all have a merrier Christmas with this news -- and looking forward to the daily counts like presents under the tree.

    kkbg
    xoxo

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  5. RobDecember 24, 2011 at 10:52 AM

    Paul, we are praying your counts keep going up and the pain down. Continue your focus one day at a time. We also hope you and your family have a Merry Christmas.

    Rob

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  6. RobDecember 24, 2011 at 10:53 AM

    Miss typed that one Joe, not sure how to edit these.

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  7. MindyDecember 24, 2011 at 6:35 PM

    Great news, Joe!

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  8. AustenfamilyDecember 25, 2011 at 4:19 AM

    Hi Joe - This is an early Christmas morning hello to you from the Austen's (Lezli, Doug, Zach and Ally). We hope that you'll be able to spend some time today with the family and enjoy the Holiday! All the best and keep those counts going in the right direction!

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  9. AnonymousDecember 25, 2011 at 7:27 AM

    Joe - may all the worst be behind you. Have a glowing white cell Christmas. Hope you can be home soon. - Buz

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  10. BertDecember 25, 2011 at 3:23 PM

    Joe - Just beginnnig to catch up on your "blasts" from this past year after receiving your holiday letter. We send you our love & prayers and keep on "counting" in the right direction! Bert & Mary Anne Saul

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