My counts have started coming up.
Up to this point, the pattern was that I would return a low complete blood count (CBC), get a transfusion (of either platelets or whole blood), the counts would respond to that and rise a bit, and then slowly drop to start the process over again. The hope was that the time between transfusions will gradually get longer and longer, until that wonderful day that I can pull the IV out completely.
Anyway, my platelets have been hovering around the low to mid-twenties, and my hemoglobin had been hovering around the high 8 to low 9 range before they would drop and I received another transfusion. This time was different. I went in for a CBC, fully expecting to get something transfused since it had been a couple of weeks since my last blood product. But that didn’t happen. My platelets came back above thirty, and my hemoglobin came back above 10 – both firsts for me since the treatment had started. Now these numbers themselves are nothing to get excited about, since a normal range for platelets is 140-350, and normal hemoglobin is 13.6-16.5. So I’m still well below where I should be. But this was the first time that my numbers had risen without a transfusion. That means something is working, even if just a little. And that is good news.