Newbie, question about low blood count

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patty12
patty12 Member Posts: 5
edited March 2014 in Ovarian Cancer #1
Hi, my name is Patty, and I am writing on behalf of my best friend of 50 yrs. She was dx this past March, with Stage 4, a very aggresive form. I have been reading these boards to educate myself, so I can understand what she is going through. She had debulking surgery followed by chemo, she is in a trial using carbo and avastin and another drug, I can't remember. She has the chest port and had the IP port which was removed because of complications. Her CA125 was at high 400's at time of dx. It has since come down to 7 after 2 treatments with IP port. Now that port is gone and we are worried. She was hospitalized last night with 102 fever, chills and headache. her WBC is 2. Can anyone help me understand what this might mean, and maybe what to expect next.

She has wonderful support from family and friends and strong faith in God. I live about 12 hrs. from her and feel so helpless. She will call me at all hours, crying and scared. You have all helped me know what to say to her. Please help me understand this low blood count (sounds dangerously low to me) and how this might affect her chemo.

Sorry to be so long winded, but I am scared and I know all of you wonderful ladies will un
derstand. Thanks for any insight and God bless you all. Patty

P.S. We are both 57 yrs. old, if that matters.

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  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #2
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    This comment has been removed by the Moderator
  • saundra
    saundra Member Posts: 1,370 Member
    #3
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    Low counts
    She will not be given chemo if her counts are not up to a certain level. She probably has some infection going on and the hospital is the place she needs to be to find out. It's hard waiting for the answer for us all and we know the anxiety you are feeling. What a great friend....you are! Saundra
  • patty12
    patty12 Member Posts: 5
    #4
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    saundra said:

    Low counts
    She will not be given chemo if her counts are not up to a certain level. She probably has some infection going on and the hospital is the place she needs to be to find out. It's hard waiting for the answer for us all and we know the anxiety you are feeling. What a great friend....you are! Saundra

    Low WBC
    Thank you, girls for your replies. Saundra, I absolutely love your new picture, it is adorable. Don't get me wrong, the other one is beautiful also. I thought that was the case, withholding chemo. I am so concerned about her staying in this trial. She seems to have one thing go wrong after another. Losing that IP port was a blow. I will know more later tonight or tomorrow, after speaking with her again. In the mean time, I keep praying.
    Thank you for your knowledge (very unforunate) and now your friendship. Will keep you all in my prayers along with Susan. I feel blessed to have found you!! Patty
  • Hissy_Fitz
    Hissy_Fitz Member Posts: 1,834
    #5
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    Bless you....
    Families are great, but girlfriends are the best.

    If it's any consolation, my white count has gone much lower than 2 on several occassions. My doctor will cancel my chemo if it isn't 1.5 or higher. Last week it was 1.7 (day of chemo) and a few days before that it was .9 and I had to cancel my root canal (again). Different doctors have different criteria, as far as how low the WBC and RBC can go before they postpone treatment. My doctor says a RBC of 7 is too low, so when mine gets down to 8, they send me for a blood transfusion. There are also weekly shots to build the WBC and another for the RBC.

    I was staged at 3c and have had 5 Carboplatin/Taxol treatments so far, with one more to go.

    Your friend's CA125 is great, and with only the two IP treatments, at that. After two sessions of Carbo/Taxol, my CA125 was still 2200 (down from 4000). The IP chemo is really, really hard on the body and she may just need some time to bounce back.

    My doctor would not give me an IP port, much to my dismay, because he did not think I would be able to tolerate the "belly wash". My initial surgery was pretty extensive (mets to my intestine that required a bowel resection) and I had lots of complications. He said if we did the IP chemo and it really kicked my butt, we would have to postpone the "regular" chemo treatments.

    I totally understand your friend's state of mind. I have done my share of crying. I got past being scared, though. Instead, I got mad as hell. I am not about to surrender to this rotten, ugly intruder.

    It's fear of the unknown that makes us crazy. Even if we get great news (remission), we still feel like the other shoe could drop at any time. Few women with advanced OVC never have a recurrance. But some do. Keep telling your friend that. Some do; why not her?

    Carlene
  • patty12
    patty12 Member Posts: 5
    #6
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    Hissy_Fitz said:

    Bless you....
    Families are great, but girlfriends are the best.

    If it's any consolation, my white count has gone much lower than 2 on several occassions. My doctor will cancel my chemo if it isn't 1.5 or higher. Last week it was 1.7 (day of chemo) and a few days before that it was .9 and I had to cancel my root canal (again). Different doctors have different criteria, as far as how low the WBC and RBC can go before they postpone treatment. My doctor says a RBC of 7 is too low, so when mine gets down to 8, they send me for a blood transfusion. There are also weekly shots to build the WBC and another for the RBC.

    I was staged at 3c and have had 5 Carboplatin/Taxol treatments so far, with one more to go.

    Your friend's CA125 is great, and with only the two IP treatments, at that. After two sessions of Carbo/Taxol, my CA125 was still 2200 (down from 4000). The IP chemo is really, really hard on the body and she may just need some time to bounce back.

    My doctor would not give me an IP port, much to my dismay, because he did not think I would be able to tolerate the "belly wash". My initial surgery was pretty extensive (mets to my intestine that required a bowel resection) and I had lots of complications. He said if we did the IP chemo and it really kicked my butt, we would have to postpone the "regular" chemo treatments.

    I totally understand your friend's state of mind. I have done my share of crying. I got past being scared, though. Instead, I got mad as hell. I am not about to surrender to this rotten, ugly intruder.

    It's fear of the unknown that makes us crazy. Even if we get great news (remission), we still feel like the other shoe could drop at any time. Few women with advanced OVC never have a recurrance. But some do. Keep telling your friend that. Some do; why not her?

    Carlene

    Thanks Carlene
    You really made me feel better, all the information helped me to understand much better, than the hours I spent online trying to get a crash course on chemo and blood counts. It can be very confusing to a novice.
    You really are a trooper and I admire your attitude. My friend (Susan), seems to still be in the stage of trying to accept this and come to terms with it. She is not at the point where she will read these boards for fear of seeing something negative. So, I do the research and tell her what is normal and to be expected. She does not want to hear anything sad.

    As of last night, she was in the hospital with the low count of 2 and a 103 fever. Doc's did lots of blood work and still no answers. We will see what today brings.

    Thanks again for your support and encouragement. Now go and kick some butt!

    Will keep you all up to date. Have a wonderful Sunday.

    Patty
  • LPack
    LPack Member Posts: 645
    #7
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    counts
    Patty,

    Like most have said our doctors doctor somewhat differently. My onc/gyn will not let me have chemo unless my white counts are 3 or above and platelets 95,000 or above. Red count I get procrit shot after chemo usually. Chemo does a number on my counts and keeps me from having chemo on schedule even with the shots to boost them up!

    Wow on the CA 125. That is wonderful after only two treatments!

    She is in the best place she can be right now. I have a friend who had Ovarian Cancer and her white count was .2 at one time. She has been cancer free for over 5 years.

    Keep us posted.

    Living for Eternity,
    Libby
  • patty12
    patty12 Member Posts: 5
    #8
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    LPack said:

    counts
    Patty,

    Like most have said our doctors doctor somewhat differently. My onc/gyn will not let me have chemo unless my white counts are 3 or above and platelets 95,000 or above. Red count I get procrit shot after chemo usually. Chemo does a number on my counts and keeps me from having chemo on schedule even with the shots to boost them up!

    Wow on the CA 125. That is wonderful after only two treatments!

    She is in the best place she can be right now. I have a friend who had Ovarian Cancer and her white count was .2 at one time. She has been cancer free for over 5 years.

    Keep us posted.

    Living for Eternity,
    Libby

    Thanks Libby
    Thanks Libby, for your helpful comments. I know from reading these boards that you also stuggle with counts. It helps to know it is not unusual. I am concerned about her discouragement this early on in her treatment. She is normally such a poitive person with very strong faith, so her state of mind has me worried. I know she has a long road ahead of her and pray that she will grab onto her faith that has carried her through other trials.

    I will definitely keep you posted. Haven't spoken with her yet today, but will call her tonight to see what is new.

    Thanks for your concern.
    Patty
  • Hissy_Fitz
    Hissy_Fitz Member Posts: 1,834
    #9
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    patty12 said:

    Thanks Libby
    Thanks Libby, for your helpful comments. I know from reading these boards that you also stuggle with counts. It helps to know it is not unusual. I am concerned about her discouragement this early on in her treatment. She is normally such a poitive person with very strong faith, so her state of mind has me worried. I know she has a long road ahead of her and pray that she will grab onto her faith that has carried her through other trials.

    I will definitely keep you posted. Haven't spoken with her yet today, but will call her tonight to see what is new.

    Thanks for your concern.
    Patty

    I'm confused....
    Did I read correctly that your friend was diagnosed last March and is just now beginning treatment? Do you happen to know why her doctors waited 10 months to start chemo?

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