This past Sunday I had a low fever and chills. The fever was just above the threshold that was designated to be the line where we called the doctor. We were told to go to the emergency room. After a long night with Billie sleeping on the floor, I was admitted to a room after 0500 AM. It turns out that I had an infection in my blood that appeared to be the same infection that I had earlier. The infection was persistent because it was appearing to come from the Hickman Catheter that was in my chest and a direct line to my vena cava. After five days as an inpatient I was discharged Friday after dark. I have a few more drugs added to my list that I take at home. Before all this started I had rarely taken any drugs. Occasionally I would take some aspirin after minor dental surgery. I had a bottle of aspirin that I bought in the 70s for road rash that was still full in 2004 when I started using it to medicate one of my old dogs. When I was discharged from the hospital the pharmacist asked where was my regular Pharmacy. She was surprised that someone my age had no regular pharmacy like some others are surprised that I have no regular lawyer. By my age I should have been taking sleeping pills, blood pressure medicine, cholesterol lowering medicine, ED medicine and all the other meds that people normally take. What's wrong with me?
Well all that has changed now. We are frequent fliers at the pharmacy. They love me so much that they call frequently before I need refills and they give us schwag like tote bags, pill cutters and med organizers. It helps that single pills for anti viral and anti fungal cost fifty dollars apiece.
Eventually I should be weaned off of all the meds if all goes well. Unlike other organ transplants a body can adapt to a bone marrow transplant so that graft rejection drugs can be discontinued after a year or so. In the meantime I am still severely immune compromised from the drugs that will ease Maura into my system. Many of the drugs have nausea as a side effect. I tried to wean off the anti nausea drugs a little early. That was a mistake.
Without all the drugs I wouldn't have a chance. Ten years ago the protocol for my type of AML would have invited a relapse. A nurse was telling me that "back in the day" they used to carry the vomit out of the oncology ward in drums. Because my nausea is under control I am better equipped to maintain a reasonable weight. With out those drugs it would be very hard to eat because everything would taste bad.
As I write this I feel as normal as can be with the help of modern scientific medicine. I am eating well and maintaining weight. We go on walks almost every day. It is pouring rain today so I will miss the daily walk. I feel strong and healthy. This is day 36 since my transplant. I will be able to go back to a more normal life in Sacramento after day 100. With some luck, all this will be behind me in a year or so.
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