Hi everyone:
When Patty and I visited Kathleen at home tonight, we were alarmed by how pale, warm and uncomfortable she seemed. She was complaining of fatigue, soreness, nausea and pain, and had a frequent cough and raspy breathing. She was having difficulty moving even a few feet, and seemed to be struggling with concentration. In short, she looked terrible, and had been feeling quite rough for more than 24 hours.
Patty called the oncologist's service, who recommended that Kathleen come to the E.R. as a precaution. At the E.R., blood tests revealed that Kathleen's platelets and other blood markers (with the exception of white cells) were quite low, and she did have a low-grade fever, so her doctor admitted her to the hospital. In the E.R., a number of tests were performed, and I.V. antibiotics were ordered as a precaution (the worry being that the low-grade fever might be suggestive of some sort of infection, perhaps from her port site). Patty headed home (reluctantly) around 12:45am...I'm staying the night.
Tonight (actually, I guess it's this morning), she is receiving immunoglobulin, followed by platelets and then whole blood. As I write this, she's sleeping and appears to be comfortable. I'll try to write again later to provide an update once we know any more. We don't know if this will be a brief or extended stay; we did know she wasn't faring well when we started the evening. Hopefully, she'll bounce at least some of the way back and be out of here soon.
Love,
Brian
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