"Alien Baby" and the Smart Bomb

I was napping earlier because I take over the AWP Hotline for the overnight hours. You'd think it would be hard to sleep at a time you are normally up but it was quite easy to "nap". I'm still amazed at how out of whack my system is. I guess toxic drugs can wreak all sorts of havoc. I am surprised by the strange noises that seem to emanate from my body all of a sudden! I'm not talking about passing gas, either. I mean "noises". It has been so weird that at work we now refer to it as "my alien baby". It growls and makes these weird sounds (almost like it's own language). Earlier today, it scared the dog! Harley was laying with his head on my stomach when all of a sudden "alien baby" let loose. Harley actually yelped, jumped up and ran off! I foresee some embarrassing times ahead.

Today I had my first injection to keep my white blood cell count elevated. I have to return to the clinic tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday for more shots. They explained that white blood cells are the body's best defensive weapons in the fight against germs and disease, so when white blood cell counts drop as a result of breast cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, it puts the patient in a vulnerable position. Without adequate protection from these disease-fighting cells, viruses and bacteria suddenly become much more serious threats. There is so much sickness going around that I need to be extremely careful. White blood cells, or leukocytes, help fight bacteria and viruses. They're like the armed guards at the gates of the body, driving back the invaders. When there are too few white blood cells, a patient's immune system is compromised, putting her at increased risk of all types of infection: bacterial, viral, and fungal.

They say to think of chemotherapy as a smart bomb: It only targets certain types of cells, particularly those that grow and divide rapidly. That means it targets tumor cells, but it also means that white blood cells, which are produced in the bone marrow and have a rapid turnover rate, can be damaged as well. White blood cell counts, sometimes called leukocyte counts, drop with most chemo drugs. Neutrophils, which are a specific type of white blood cell, are the most potent disease fighters. The doctor may refer to a low white blood cell count as neutropenia, since a shortage of neutrophils is often what the doctor is most concerned about. Sometimes I get tired just thinking about it!