Today I went to the hospital for my lumbar puncture. The procedure is done by a doctor in the Haematology daycare unit, but by chance the BMT clinic was also running today (the delayed Monday clinic) so I popped up to say hello before signing in. I have changed my next appointment to be the 12th of January just before I (hopefully) travel to Israel.
I had the last LP under sedation, but this time I decided to just have a local anaesthetic because I wanted to drive home myself afterwards. Like most procedures, the level of discomfort depends upon the skill of the doctor ... and of course Lady Luck!
The pharmacy released the methotrexate without a problem, so I did not have to wait long. However, the procedure was not very nice. The needle went in very close to a nerve, and I got electric shocks down my right leg and my right foot. It was particularly unpleasant when she injected the methotrexate. But still, it doesn't last so long, and it's only once a quarter and there's only two more to go!
The nurses were not going to take blood, but I asked for a blood count to see if my neutrophils had gone down since last week (which would point the finger at the Glivec dose). I am pleased to say my white count was never higher; my neutrophils are 3.87 and my lymphocytes 0.49, the highest they have been for a while.
We had a lovely "traditional" Christmas - just the two of us, some great food, fantastic wine and the Queens's speech. We have also taken advantage of the unseasonably mild weather and played a lot of golf. Although I am playing really badly, Rose is well on form, and yesterday she shot gross 78, which is her lowest score ever. This augers well for 2012.
I hope you had a nice Christmas break, and I wish you all a fantastic New Year.
No comments:
Post a Comment