Day 5 - out of the boring bracket

Dad was running a bit of a fever before going to bed last night and by 6:30 this morning it was at 38.3 C (100.9 F) so I reported that. Also, last night Dad was having some diarrhea so the nurse wanted me to get a sample this morning to send to the lab to test for c diff - a particular strain of bacteria found in the intestines. So a sample was secured (I won't go into details...but that was my least favorite nurse duty) and it is being analyzed.

In the mean time we have a sign on our door that tells all who enter to suit up and put on a gown and gloves. The sign stays up until either the test comes back negative, or until he gets over the infection. It also tells the housekeeper to use a clorox wash on everything in the room. In other words...the sign means..."possible cooties here".

We went to the treatment center this morning for results of the daily blood work and to see the doctor. Dad's blood work was as I expected...he needed a platelet transfusion today. White blood cells were still .1, but the red blood cells and hemoglobin were up (still below normal...but up). This morning he also required a shot of magnesium (administered thru iv). Because of his temp and low white blood cell count, they started him on antibiotics...through a drip. Hence, the no longer boring status.

He's still really tired and dozing off most of the time. When the doctor came in, he said that Dad looked good...he realized he didn't feel so great with everything ...but he said he looked way better than lots of people going through this. He also said that all of Dad's symptoms are very common and pretty much to be expected for going through the stem cell transplant. He told Dad to keep up the good work and keep walking. I thought it was very encouraging to hear the doctor say that he looked good.

Well, the c diff test came back negative and we just got the formal ok so the cootie sign is now off our door. That's good news. Because of Dad's fever, they are also checking for possible causes so they drew blood from both lumens of his catheter, from his port, checked his stool, checked his urine, drew blood from his arm. Dad asked if they'd like any of his ear wax to check (that was about all that was left to check).

He got through the yellow bag of platelets without any reaction (they gave him some benedryl and tylenol before giving him the transfusion). He got through the antibiotics without a reaction...so the nurse will be up to our room to give him the next dose of antibiotics (iv) at 4:00. He got his magnesium. Now, he just needs to wake up so I can order some food for him. He's been sawing logs since we got back to the room.

The nursing staff and doctors are very attentive here. The cooperative care nurse was just in, checking up on things. They are always available when you call...they have a cell phone and answer immediately. That's all for now. I'll try to post later today.