4 week labs in

i just FINALLY got my 4wk labs in, even tho tomorrow is shot 6, but VL is still pending. here are 2wk and 4wk labs

                2wk         4wk
Neutro          1300        1300
WBC             2900        2500
Platelets       91          82
Hemoglobin      11.8        10.1
Hematacrit      33.5        29.2
   most everything else is WNL, i didn't get my RBC amount, cuz it was over the phone and doc was TOO BUSY. i will get a copy this afternoon. i was feeling  more dizzy yesterday and fatigued. my GI says lets do labs in 2 wks cuz HGB is on the border, but my concern is if i dropped almost 2 points in 2 wks, and if it ddrops 2 more in the next two, i know procrit takes 2-3 wks to start working. i don't want to drop too much in that span. and why do i have to tell my GI this, he should be telling me. he is referring me to a hemotologist, who knows how long it will take to get an appt with them. any ideas on what i should suggest to my ignorant docs?  thanks for any imput.

[FlGuy]

Don't waste time wating on the referral, get active. Get it in hand, find out which hemo is available in your plan (if that's a consideration).  Make an appt with the hemo today!  Get in as soon as you can.  Need to arrest falling hgb as soon as possible and the effective time for procrit can be a couple/few weeks.

[aquarius64]

yes, i have been trying to be on top of these lame docs. i don't even think they would have called with my results had i not pestered them. i will get the hematologists name today when i pick up my labs and i will get on it asap! thanks.

[FlGuy]

I see a hemo every two weeks (tomorrow is the day).  When I go in there they do a cbc on the spot.  Results spit out of the cbc machine in less than a minute.  If I'm a quart low on anything, they'll inject it right then and there - based on standing orders from the hemo doc (we established intervention levels already). So, most of the time I see the techs, not the doc.  But, I saw the doc at the start to establish those 'standing orders' that the techs will execute on. Things in the office are very fluid and fairly rapid - you might not have a long wait for an appt.  Let them know, when you call, that you are on hep-c tx and that your hgb is dropping like a rock. STAT might be a good word to use.

[aquarius64]

thanks again. yes, i am getting good at demanding things these days, besides being a b***h from tx. i was trying to find a hepatologist in my area to oversee my tx, but i could only find an infectious disease doc sort of nearby. jmjm said there are some hepa's in newark and nyc. i am in nj. it's hard to travel these days and i have 2 small kids. i hope this hema doc knows what he's doing, cuz my GI is slow and when i called for my results on fri, the girl says, everthing is normal, which is so far from the truth, and i was trying to find out my VL, which is never normal, since any VL over 1 is abnormal, as far as i'm concerned. not to mention my CBC being on low and alert levels. how dumb can people be? thank God for you guys!!! thanks again

[nygirl7]

My hemo was able to drop 6 points in just over one week.

You REALLY have to stay on top of it - it can do anything and doesn't have to follow any rules.

Be careful.



It usually takes 5 - 10 business days to get PCR results back but a common CBC should at the latest come back a day later.

I would advise getting a different way to get this test done - you can't afford to get back an HGB ten days later - that could prove to be crucial time to you since Procrit / Epogen takes at LEAST 2 - 6 weeks to work.  Those ten days...........really would matter.

[FlGuy]

One more thing, if you have lab reports showing your 2 and 4 week hgb levels, bring them to the hemo with you.  They may be helpul to them in discrening the rate of hgb decline and help them figure out dosage and frequency.  At 10.1, (which is probably lower today) they'll probably hit you with procrit anyway.  As you've read in posts here, modulating procrit is important and sometimes tricky.

[aquarius64]

did you used to have a #7 at the end of your moniker? i don't remember it being there. how are you doing? hope things are getting better. i read about your car trip with your daughter. right on! hope things continue to improve! i will call the hema doc today asap. i don't want to mess around with it. it's a good thing i have learned so much here and OVERSEE my own tx, in comparison to my GI doing it! i can't count on them!!

[aquarius64]

are there sx from procrit? and what are they?

[GrandOak]

You're numbers do not seem to abnormal or a cause for great concern.  RBC is not as important as Hgb (which is a measurement dependent upon RBC).  If I recall, you Hgb drop does not seem to be excessibly fast given you time on treatment, so I would not be concerned about needing Procrit just yet.  Weekly or bi-weekly CBC would be nive until CBC numbers appear to be settling in for your tx period.

Since you asked, the Procrit Sx's:

Fatigue 25% 31%
Headache 19% 14%
Cough 18% 14%
Diarrhea 16% 18%
Rash 16% 8%
Congestion, Respiratory 15% 10%
Nausea 15% 12%
Shortness of Breath 14% 13%
Asthenia 11% 14%
Skin Reaction Medication Site 10% 7%
Dizziness 9% 10

[GrandOak]

Oh, the numbers on right a Procrit, the ones on left are placebo.

[Myown]

hey aquarius!
i hope you get a big UND when the VL results are in!!!!!

[aquarius64]

thanks all! i do have an appt with a hepa tomorrow, so i'll know a bit more then. i can't wait to get my VL. it'll probably take 7 weeks for my GI to fill me in on that #. hope you all are doing well! thanks again

[ladybug52]

I was just wondering about you and VOILA! you appear!
Your labs sound exactly like my 2 week and 4 week lab. I changed dr's after my 4 week lab, before I even got the results in. My hgb was 11.8 at 2 weeks and 10.1 at 4 weeks hematocrit at 33.7 then 28.5 I had to drive to the old dr's office, and pick up the lab results. (they wouldn't fax them or reveal results over the phone, a big reason I left that group)I brought them by my new dr's and she immediately prescribed procrit. When I asked if I should wait to see if the hgb went any lower she said "You can if you want but I'm pretty sure it's going to keep dropping and the procrit takes a few weeks to kick in"
Why do dr's like to wait? My new group is not perfect, takes forever to get a phone call back from the nurse, but at least the important things like pcr's and blood work gets the attention it needs. I'm so glad you are going to a hemo tomorrow. Good for you!

[ladybug52]

BTW do you know what your hgb was before tx? Luckily I had  a copy of my labs a month prior to tx and my hgb was 14.3 and hematocrit was 41.6. I think going from 14.3 to 10.1 was what was making me feel so faint but I don't thnk the dr even looked at those numbers when she prescribed procrit. I just kind of barged in on her w/o an appt so maybe she wanted me to go away! JK, she had my 4 week und test to show me after I showed her my labs from the old dr.

[aquarius64]

hello! how are you? hope things are well for you. i haven't been going online as much since my 24yr old daughter came out to visit and help me with the little ones. i belive my HGB was 13.6 and HCT was 38.9, and that was dec 22nd, right before my liver bx. so i would say i'm dropping about 1 point each week since tx started. i do shot 6 tomorrow. BTW, how often do i need a TSH? i had one at 2wks.

[ladybug52]

So glad you have some help with the kids. I don't know about the tsh, I haven't seen my last couple of labs, the nurse reads them to me. I am going in Friday to pick up copies. My 2 week lab had a tsh 4 weeks had a T-4 test. I'd probably have checked it more if I was having symptoms.
LB