Crazy Week

     Crazy week! It started last Wednesday when I woke up in the morning (12pm .) Woke up, walked to the bathroom and stood there waiting for dear Mama to come out. As I was standing there, I noticed that I was getting a little dizzy and everything started to white out. At this point, I knew I was going to collapse if I kept standing there so I ran as fast as I can back to bed before I fall on the hard ground. It happened again when my good old buddy Tony came over and I tried to open the door. This occurred before when I’m super anemic (low on red blood cell count) so I called my cool oncologist and told her about the happening. Me and my sister-in-law went in for a blood draw and dressing change right after. While I was there, I didn’t feel too good so I requested the nurse to check my temperature to reassure that I do not have a fever. To our surprise, I was at 103* so my oncologist requested a blood culture as well. After providing the blood, we went home and I got little rest before the on call oncologist gave me a ring and ordered me to go into the emergency room. If I do happen to get an infection, they can quickly treat it with antibiotics. I hated the emergency room because it was always a 3-4 hour wait before I can get a room. To my surprise, they tested my heart beat and found out I had a rate of 180-200 so they quickly shoot me into a room. I didn’t know if I should be happy or sad because of that but I am sure glad I didn’t have to wait.
     The doctors did a number of test and chest x-ray to see if they can spot any pneumonia or internal bleeding but found nothing. They juiced me up with 2 units of red blood cell and kept me overnight to see if my fever has dropped. I was also accompanied by the oxygen tank and heart monitor throughout this whole ordeal. When my fever stabilized in the morning, they decided not to discharge me because I was already due for chemotherapy. Some medics came in and wheeled me to the oncology side of the hospital. I was, once again, home. We spent the next four day doing ICE chemotherapy. Usual cycle consist of 2 hours of etoposide on the first day. 2 hours of etoposide, 2 hours of carboplatin, and 24 hour of ifosfamide on the second day will carry onto the third day. Day three will consist of 2 hours of etoposide and saline hydration. During my hospital stay, I felt strong enough so I finally had visitors! Co Hoang Mong Thu showed up with the people from A3M (asianmarrow.org) to pay a short visit and take some pictures. They are really bright people with a fantastic smile. Tony, Son, George (super monkey,) Cuong, and Nhan also showed up to share my time in the hospital. Besides all these wonderful people showing up to see me, I also had my courageous Mother, Brothers, and Sister-in-Law who were constantly by my side in the hospital making sure I don’t have a dull moment. We finished chemotherapy on Sunday and were discharged at around 12 noon.
     My elementary friend Ly from Sacramento showed up with his girlfriend to visit me. We tried going for Mexican food but my taste bud didn’t return yet so it was disgusting to swallow down the food. When they left, I went to sleep because I was still super tired from the chemotherapy. I woke up at around 7 at night and was looking a little pale and tired. I had the same problem returning; white out and extreme headache when I try to get up. My at-home-nurse (anh Giac >=D hehe) checked my temperature and it came back up to 103* again. So here we are, after being released from 5 days of inpatient hospital care; I decided to get a fever and turn to that scary emergency room. I still didn’t have to wait but this emergency room thing is starting to look like routine work for me. For this return visit, they performed the necessary test for infections and they also kept me on a heart monitor for 2 days under step down’s care. My poor brother had to sit through the whole night and slept in two chairs. They decided to transfuse 2 more units of red blood cells and the step down nurse couldn’t get my pick line to work so she had to poke another hole in my vein for an IV line. I was released on Wednesday after everything stabilized and could finally enjoy the comfort of my own bed again. According to my oncologist, this ICE chemotherapy might be wearing off on my cancer cells since my fever is constantly coming back. I will talk to my doctor more to learn about this situation.


Minnesota called and we are flying out on Sunday June 6th for testing and hopefully transplant!


www.projectkhanh.com is officially running!