This week's challenge has been keeping hemoglobin levels high enough to get by. I haven't had too much in formation hit me on the diet side (red meat, beans, etc), but the big-impact option with the medical folks to get rest and add blood cells.
I've had a couple of those this week.
Platelets consistently drop to 2 or 3. Hemoglobin level dropped quite a bit with the Wednesday reading. This has kicked off some planning work toward a stem cell replacement. The doctor originally recommended doing this at City of Hope in the L.A. area. However, the desire / need for support from family leads him to suggest UCSF. Stanford is also on the list. He's contacted them and sent supporting test results and I'm waiting to hear from them.
If this proceeds... here's what to expect. I'd fly out to SF for a consultation and then return to Maui. They'll do some testing and evaluation and consultation, etc. Once back in Maui, I could sustain the transfusions and do other preparation work. The time after that to wait before going back for the transplant is something like 2-4 weeks assuming I have everything coordinated regarding the donor and such.
The good news is that each private room is provided with real privacy. It's a one-month period in the hospital combined with two months after where I must maintain close proximity to the hospital. After that,
Today's weather seems alright. Yayyyyyyy.
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