Neutropenic

I am finally neutropenic. This means my neutrophil count (the white blood cells that fight infection) has gone below 0.5. It is actually 0.07 which means I currently have no immunity whatsoever, which is a frightening thought really.

This marks the start of not being allowed off the ward and of maximum side effects, so it seems to be an odd thing to be happy about; but this is what I've been waiting nearly 9 days for. Plus it shows that the chemo is doing what it's supposed to and killing everything off! The consultants have advised that my blood counts will stay rock bottom for 4-5 days and then my stem cells will start to do their business, my counts will start climbing, and then shortly after that I should go home.

My current level of side effects are bearable, but trying. Eating is still a challenge, and even if I did want to eat my sore throat and aching teeth take quite a bit of the pleasure from the process. Apparently the chemo makes the insides of the teeth swell, and I'm suffering an abscess type of pain. Thankfully at this time the pain is only on the left hand side, and they do provide some brilliant mouthwash which has a numbing effect giving some relief. I continue to suffer with stomach cramps, but again I have been given medication which eases this a lot and I cannot say this is something that bothers me a great deal now.

The other thing that has hit me today is the lethargy. I can't say that any day recently I've woken up with a spring in my step, but today I could have happily laid in bed all day. I was up at 8am, and I did manage some exercises, but by 11am I was lying down and going back to sleep. The funny thing is I don't feel ill with it, I imagined the lethargy would feel like when you have a cold and you feel rubbish, but this is just extreme tiredness. I was literally nodding off in my chair sitting up, but not felling bad with it.

Listen to me whinge on. As an antidote I thought you might all like to see a picture of me with my limp thumb up. So here it is:

See I don't look that bad, and despite what my wife may tell you, I haven't airbrushed it. I just lightened it up a bit because the photo was slightly dark.

I also snapped the shower head off this morning (don't know my own strength) and by 2pm it was all replaced, pipes an all. I haven't got a bad word to say about the NHS I really haven't.