Dr. visit update

Good news from Dad's doctor visit this morning: his blood work is good. White blood cells down a bit but still in the normal range, hemoglobin strong, and his platelets are much improved. Last week his platelets were pretty low: 76.5 (normal is between 150-450). This week they are at 305...a huge jump.

So the plan now is he goes through round 2 of chemo tomorrow, Wed, and Thurs. Then they are scheduling him to have his next scan on Feb 10. At that point they will be looking to see how much the tumor has responded to the 2 rounds of chemo and if all is well, he will go up to the Med Center in Omaha to see his doctor there for an appointment that following week to discuss when the harvesting of stem cells and the transplant will take place. Also, on the 10th, Dad will have an Echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart) and a pulmonary assessment...checking the lungs. These are both routine tests the doctor in Omaha needs before proceeding with a stem cell transplant.

But for now...one step at a time. Dad will be up bright and early tomorrow at 8:00 to start day one of round 2 chemo. He says he feels strong (I would say that is an understatement!). That first day is the long one...8 hours...so any comments made on the blog tomorrow will help him pass the time. He will have his laptop with him. I'll keep you posted tomorrow.