Happy new year! Danny and I hope your 2023 is off to a great start, and we wish you loads of happiness and good health this year and for many years to come.
It’s been a while since I shared an update, so I’ll end the suspense!
Danny is still in the hospital. Today is day 23 (for a whopping total 45 days in the hospital since November 21, 2022, for those keeping track). As anyone who has ever had an extended hospital stay knows, the days all blend together in a blur of drug-induced “rest”, interrupted by nurses taking vital signs and administering medications, doctors poking, prodding, and firing off questions, janitorial staff sanitizing and emptying trash cans, techs changing bed linens, and our favorite… the incessant and deafening BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP of the IV pump alarm.
Despite the hospital’s unintended attempt to prevent Danny from getting any quality rest (haha!), he’s doing quite well. His re-induction treatment that consisted of four different chemotherapy drugs ended around December 27. His blood counts quickly dropped and he became neutropenic (meaning that he has too few neutrophils, a type of white blood cell that helps fight certain infections). In case you’re wondering, this is what the treatment is supposed to do.
Since the chemotherapy ended, the objective has been managing symptoms and side effects with various medications and regular blood & platelet transfusions, and most importantly, keeping him free of infections.
His blood counts are still very low and he remains neutropenic, which the doctors have assured us is “normal”. So, it’s now a waiting game, albeit not a very fun game! We are waiting for his numbers to come back up. Once they’re at certain levels, and provided that his side effects are under control, he’ll get to go home! We just have no way of knowing when that will be. Fingers crossed that it’s sooner rather than later.
Thank you for the unending love and support, including all the phone calls, texts, emails, cards, and gifts! You lovely people are some very generous and thoughtful folks!! Our gratitude runs deeps.
Until next time, be well.
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