Dr. Kogel came in today, to give us some updates. The good news of today is that Detlef continues to do well, and his lab tests are doing well. He will probably get a blood transfusion this evening or tomorrow. (This is normal for people undergoing chemotherapy. It stops the bone marrow from producing red blood cells at it's normal rate - another take home message. . . . . give blood. . . . . people with cancer use a lot of it.)
Because Detlef is doing so well, Dr. Kogel is planning on moving him back to the chemotherapy floor tonight. It could have already happened by now. The oncology floor is on the 10th floor of the hospital. The good part about being there is that the nurses know how to give chemo, and monitor the patients receiving it. There also aren't a lot of patients with major communicable infections there. People may be sick, but they aren't as sick as some of the people in ICU. The nurses in the ICU did a great job of washing their hands before and after entering Detlef's room, but Detlef will feel better about being moved.
The results of the x-ray of his chest just showed that he has a little extra fluid in his system. This is because they have been putting a lot of fluid in him through his intravenous line, to help flush out his kidneys. This is in addition to the large amount of water and other things that Detlef is drinking on his own. They also did an EKG of his heart which was fine as well. His pulse is a little low when he is sleeping which can be caused by one of his chemo drugs, but he also has a normal resting heart rate that is pretty low.
Tomorrow will be Detlef's last day of chemotherapy. He will be receiving two other medications that he hasn't received before. The doctor doesn't anticipate that he will respond poorly to those. She said that he might just have a little less appetite than normal, which means that he might eat about the amount that the rest of the world eats, but we will see. . . .
Tomorrow Karma is going to work for a couple of hours, and then we will go to the hospital to hang out with Detlef. I will be flying out to Provo tomorrow evening, but I have told Karma that I will contact her daily, and post updates on the blog. When Detlef, Dietmar, Jen, and Karma get life under better control, they will start contributing the blog as well.
Some words of advice for people who are concerned about everyone. If you call or visit Detlef, realize that you should only chat on the phone or visit for just a few minutes. 5 minutes or less, so that Detlef doesn't have to end the phone call. It makes him tired. For now, please read the blog, or call me for updates. Karma has a lot of people who call or are concerned, and she is spending a great deal of time on the phone. Text her, or e-mail her, or read the blog, or call me. Karma is going to contact me daily, and I am going to continue to update the blog for people to stay informed. As soon as I get home I will have someone help me post pictures as well.
Love you all! Your thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated by everyone!
Lisa
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