Lucy's Coumadin dosage needs adjusting upward, so she will be here at least one more day. Unfortunately, her hemoglobin dropped from 7.8 to 6.1 so she needed a two unit transfusion. Lucy's birthday is Sunday the 5th and I would love to see her home by then! It is a day-by-day holding pattern.
Molly, Dr. Nashawaty and Jackie from Minnesota Oncology were by to see her progress. Acute anemia can show up in patients receiving chemo. Lucy was originally scheduled for her next Alimta treatment on Thursday, February 2nd. The treatment has been moved to February 16th. Her body will get a little more chance to recover. Her white is stable and in the normal range, and her platelet count is normal and stable.
So maybe today didn't start great, but there is still good news. Molly noted that Lucy's calf skin is less taut. It no longer looks like it is going to split open. She still has quite a bit of swelling in her right ankle and a slight amount in her left ankle. The left ankle swelling will reduce as she becomes more active. Her right leg still cannot be massaged and they can't put a "puffer" on it because there are still a couple small clots. They do not want the clots to dislodge and start travelling. A "staycation" is good enough for the clots.
Lucy only needed one Dilaudid shot last night for pain. She is taking oxycodone tablets to manage pain. Her pain pump was removed last night.
A Physical Therapy specialist came by this morning and checked Lucy's strength and range of motion. She also had Lucy do a series of simple exercises that can be done in bed and left a booklet detailing how to do the exercises. Lucy is supposed to do them twice a day.
An Occupational Therapy specialist came by about an hour later. She assisted Lucy out of bed. Lucy managed to walk around the bed. Lucy's pain doesn't increase very much when she puts weight on her leg. Her ankle still has a limited range of motion so getting her foot flat on the floor is a challenge. After a couple minutes, she can stand flat footed. Walking is very slow. She is not unsteady on her feet. Lucy has surprising physical strength for someone so petite. The goal is to keep her from losing strength while her leg gets better. She will try using a walker tomorrow.
Give your loved ones a hug from us, and thank you for your support!
I read this daily with a tear in my eye and a prayer in my heart. So glad you are keeping everyone updated. Though I have not kept in touch with Lucy and her siblings, I think of them often and pray for God's blessings in their lives. Happy to know Lucy has someone like you in her life. Sending thoughts of love and healing her way.
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