Andrew had a lab draw yesterday. He has not had a shot of neupogen in over a week, so these results gave a good idea of the white blood cells his body is producing naturally. The numbers were low, with his white blood cell level at 1.3 and his neutrophils down to 600.
The doctors decided today to put him back on neupogen until our next appointment a week from Friday. At that point they will make a determination of where we go from here.
The news is pretty disappointing because it seemed that his body was producing a higher level of white blood cells on its own. We have now gone over a month with his platelet and hemoglobin level normal, and his white cell levels very low. It will be interesting to see what the doctors' opinions are.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Today's Lab Results
Andrew hasn't had any neupogen since Sunday(and only a .05mL dose then), so today's lab results are closer to what he is actually producing. His white blood cell count was at 2.4, and his neutrophil count was at 1500. These results are encouraging. The doctors have told us not to do any more neupogen injections through the weekend, and we will get another lab draw on Monday. By then, all residual white cells produced while on neupogen should be gone, and we can get an accurate assessment of what his body is naturally producing.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Rainbow Connection Walk for Kids
Our family is participating in the Rainbow Connection Walk for Kids tomorrow at the Detroit Zoo. We just received information on the event this week, so we haven't had much time to mention it or the fundraising that goes along with it.
The Rainbow Connection is a charitable organization that provides support and helps grant wishes to children in Michigan with life threatening illnesses. For those who want more information on the charity, you can visit their homepage here. Andrew qualifies for support from them because of his aplastic anemia. We have been talking to them recently, and it looks like they will be granting him a wish in the near future.
To those who would be interested in donating to the Rainbow Connection in Andrew's name, please visit his Rainbow Connection fundraising page here. They put together very nice(and expensive) wishes for children, and have a lot of available services for families going through difficult times. The fundraising page will be up long after the walk tomorrow, so you can make a donation afterwards if you want to.
The Rainbow Connection is a charitable organization that provides support and helps grant wishes to children in Michigan with life threatening illnesses. For those who want more information on the charity, you can visit their homepage here. Andrew qualifies for support from them because of his aplastic anemia. We have been talking to them recently, and it looks like they will be granting him a wish in the near future.
To those who would be interested in donating to the Rainbow Connection in Andrew's name, please visit his Rainbow Connection fundraising page here. They put together very nice(and expensive) wishes for children, and have a lot of available services for families going through difficult times. The fundraising page will be up long after the walk tomorrow, so you can make a donation afterwards if you want to.
No Major Changes
Andrew went back to U of M hospital today, and there were no major changes. His platelets and hemoglobin counts rose slightly again. The white blood cell count was 5.0, and the neutrophils were 4100, but that is probably due to the last neupogen injection he got on Wednesday evening.
The doctors want him to get a .05mL dose of neupogen Sunday, then will take another blood count Wednesday before doing any more injections. Hopefully, his body will produce enough white blood cells to keep his counts up.
Tomorrow, our family will be participating in a fundraising walk for the Rainbow Connection at the Detroit Zoo. We will have more information on that later.
The doctors want him to get a .05mL dose of neupogen Sunday, then will take another blood count Wednesday before doing any more injections. Hopefully, his body will produce enough white blood cells to keep his counts up.
Tomorrow, our family will be participating in a fundraising walk for the Rainbow Connection at the Detroit Zoo. We will have more information on that later.
Friday, September 3, 2010
More Neupogen Goodness
Andrew was getting shots of neupogen every other day this week, so his white blood cell counts were through the roof again yesterday. His white blood cell count was at 16.3, 10 times that of last week, and his neutrophils were at 14.7, almost 25 times last week. His hemoglobin level remained steady, and his platelets fell slightly, to 161,000. That seems to happen when he is on neupogen.
The doctors want him to take two shots this week, on Sunday and Wednesday, and we will be back at U of M hospital Friday. Hopefully the blood count results will give us a better idea of whether this will work, and how long before we can start reducing his cyclosporin dose. In the meantime, we are spending Labor Day weekend in Caseville.
The doctors want him to take two shots this week, on Sunday and Wednesday, and we will be back at U of M hospital Friday. Hopefully the blood count results will give us a better idea of whether this will work, and how long before we can start reducing his cyclosporin dose. In the meantime, we are spending Labor Day weekend in Caseville.
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