Endoscopy and blood-work.

Today I had an endoscopy. The surgeon wanted to look around to see what percentage of my stomach needed to be removed. The preliminary results is that it looks like my cancer is limited to the top of my stomach. We won't know the true extent until the biopsy because looks can be deceiving. If this is true the surgery would possibly be done via a laparoscopic procedure (minimally invasive). This would reduce the chance of infection and make recovery easier.

I also had my appointment for tomorrow's chemo. The good news is my Neutrophils number went up from 1.35 to a 4.86. While not as high as pre-chemo (7.6) it is in the range above 2. It means that we can continue on the path and I'm not as compromised as I was at the end of the last round.

As for red blood cell counts, they are down from last time. The main number, my hemoglobin is down from 8.6 to 7.4. Before the chemo my number as still below baseline at 13.4 where anything less than 13.5 would be considered low and anything below 8 requires additional attention. The pre-chemo number is consistent with both having cancer and also having stomach ulcerations due to the cancer.  Since I was working out regularly, I noticed that my standard cardio that should have been a heart rate of 150 was 164 on my last workout and nausea when I was lifting weights. It was one of the signs that something was up.

This low hemoglobin is why I have so much fatigue and also why my resting heart rate last week was peaking at 99. Doing the dishes would push my heart rate to 113. At the time of my blood test my resting heart rate when back down to 83 so my hemoglobin was even lower earlier in the week. When I was working out my resting heart rate was in the low 50's so this is a big change for me. To help progress, I'm going to get a blood infusion on Friday. This should help these numbers out and provide me with more energy and focus. I know that a lot of people are volunteering to donate blood for me, I don't think it works that way; I will look into it.


P.S. Tip for people going though chemo. Not only is having a treadmill great but I would recommend a Fit-bit or something like it. It makes tracking your heart rate much easier and it also forces you to walk which is a good exercise.

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