Quiet night, rough day

06/11/10-0400
ANC 6700

Alan got a fairly smooth night of sleep, other than having to replace a dislodged needle in his port when the nurse came to take his blood sample at four in the morning. No matter, it was done quickly and he fell back to sleep almost right away. However, it was another day of irritability for Alan. On top of that, his creatinine levels are high, so Doc A has ordered the final Ifosfamide treatment held today since it can be very tough on the kidneys.

Doc A has been concerned with Alan's reaction - how much of this is a reaction to the Ifosfamide and Etoposide, how much of can be attributed to the pocket of gas in his tummy seen on the ultrasound and Vincristine-induced constipation? Even the Ativan isn't necessarily enough to lull him to rest any more and we stepped things up a notch from Miralax to Milk of Magnesia. Based on the way he moves, Harold and I really believe that constipation and gas are a big contributor to his discomfort. Certainly he seems to relax whenever he has a sizable bowel movement or release of gas.

He hasn't gone for a walk around the unit since Wednesday and he just sat up on his own to play in the crib for the first time in two days because he's been feeling so weak and shaky from the chemo. It is so sad to see him unable to hold a full water bottle on his own or shaking as he tries to hold a styrofoam cup of snacks. Doc A has mentioned the possibility of keeping him an extra day for observation if his creatinine levels don't go down or his activity doesn't return to normal. So while we're still hoping to be home by tomorrow night, we might have to stay until Sunday. We're praying for a quick recovery though so Alan can get out of that hospital crib!