Quote:
Originally Posted by sandra
Hi Shana and Matt,
Can you clarify something for me please?
1. Why do you say that Haylee did not get chemo so far? Didn't she get the ATG (horse serum) upon being diagnosed with vSAA? Do you still have a record that shows her counts at diagnosis (WBC, HGB, PLT, ANC, and MCV)?
2. Why is she getting the Neupogen shots? Is her ANC dipping below 200 (or 0.2) within a week from the shot?
3. Are you actually saying that she's on DAILY prednisone since February??!! How many miligrams?
Sandra
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Hi Sandra,
Thank you for the questions. Here are my responses corresponding to your numerical bulletpoints:
1. My understanding is that ATG is not a form of chemo. Yes, Haylee did receive one round of ATG immediately upon diagnosiss of VSAA. This eventually helped to increase her RBC, HCT, and ANC. Yes, I have all of her counts upon diagnosis as well as every count taken since then. I maintain a chart to track her overall trend and effectiveness of her current drug regime. Her initial counts back in Feb were roughly: ANC = 10, HCT = 20%, PLT = 10,000. She has been transfusion-free for approximately four and a half months and her more recent counts are roughly: ANC = 1200, HCT = 26%, PLT = 50,000. What does "MCV" stand for?
2. Haylee's oncologist has prescribed weekly Neupogen injections until the end of September when her counts will be taken again. At that time, he will consider taking her off of Neupogen and tapering off her other meds as well.
Since being transfusion-free, the weekly Neupogen injections have caused huge spikes in Haylee's ANC (as high as 8000+) within 48 hours followed by huge dips within less than a week (as low as 500) until the next injection. Haylee's overall recent ANC trend, however, has been increasing (along with HCT and PLT). Her ANC, in comparison to her HCT and PLT, continues to be the slowest to increase though. Why do you ask? We are aware of the risks to neupogen, but feel at this time, that the benefits outweigh the risks.
3. Yes, Haylee has been on prednisone daily since diagnosis with a brief break in April. When she was diagnosed back in Feb, her prednisone dose was around 180mg. Her oncologist has had her tapering off each month since then. Her current daily dose of 5mg has been in effect since June. Why did you ask this question?
I welcome your response - information can be life-saving.
