Low blood counts and a blood clot - Im scared.

[ConcernedInNY]

ok my mom went for her blood test today.  Her red and white counts are low so they gave her shots.  And I understand they will give her another shot tomorrow.  Is this normal?  Should we be worried that her counts are so low that she needs all these extra shots?  Or is this normal because chemo kills all cells good and bad?

Also, my moms leg was bothering her.  I dont know how they figured it out, but they said she has a blood clot in her leg.  Is this a coincidence or is this a result of the disease or the chemo?  She is in the hospital and they have her hooked up to an IV.

Im really getting scared.

Anyone have a similar experience or have words of encouragement?

[MickeyVicki]

Clotting in the legs causes pain and swelling.  Often, the first sign will be light swelling around the joints, such as the ankle and the knee.  Patients often admit they believed they simply  had a flare up of arthritis, and  only later learned it was swelling from a clot.  The swelling, if not treated, can become very severe.

Clots that form in the lungs cause difficulty breathing, as well as back and shoulder pain.  The pain from clots in the lungs is much more intense than pain from clots in the legs.

The treatment is medication to reduce the clotting factors, usually coumadin, and rest.  When the clots form in the legs, or occasionally in the arms, the limbs are elevated to improve circulation while the clots are being slowly disolved by the body and medication.

[milashka]

Nobody ever mentioned blood clots to me...what are the signs and symptoms?

[kathy o]

Hi Alan,
I go in today and tomorrow for White Cell shots, so very normal. I will mention today about the blot clot in leg when I am there and see if they have any info... I am glad that her Dr. is on top of things. I too ended up in the Hospital after my first Chemo, though not for Blood Clot. Hope things are better ....

[newlifegal]

As far as the blood clots go, yes, cancer can predispose you to developing them.  So can ports.  I formed a small blood clot in my right calf shortly after my port placement.  I was then put on 1 mg of Coumadin.  However when my first port became infected, it was removed and replaced with my second port.  Unfortunately I developed a large clot in my vena cava that traveled down the entire extent of my left arm.  The port had to be removed and I had to take Lovenax injections until my INR was in range for me to be placed on Coumadin.  Once you develop a blood clot you are always going to be susceptible.  I'm glad they discovered your mom's clot when they did.  She will most likely be just fine but will need to be cognizant about the signs and symptoms.

[ConcernedInNY]

Hi Gail, yes she is strong, but she is sounding tired which is understandable.  Its just that, with her age, Im afraid at some point she might want to give up.  But I wont let her - I told her the other day, "we're not done with you yet".  I said it jokingly, but she knew what I meant.

[MickeyVicki]

Alan, as everyone has already told you, the disruption of the normal blood counts can predispose a patient to developing clots.  Cell counts that are too high or too low can cause an imbalance in the blood.   As for how they determined the cause of her leg pain, dvt causes visible swelling in addition to pain.  To completely diagnose the condition only requires the use of non-invasive color doppler ultrasound; so while it sounds rather scary, the process was essentially painless.

[gah_70]

Yes, chemo certainly does make your counts go down.  It is also not uncommon for patients to have daily shots.  There was one point during my treatments when my counts were so low, I had shots of Neupogen (for white cells) 5 days in a row, and Procrit (for red cells) twice a week.  There for awhile, I began to think I had so many "pin holes" in me that one more would surely send me bouncing around the room like a balloon that's sprung a leak!  But the good news is, it never kept me from having chemo on time...that's what the shots are for.  

Does your mother have a port, or does she receive chemo via IV?  I have a port, so I take a 1 mg dose of coumadin every day to reduce the chances of a clot forming.  I always assumed it was just because of the port, but perhaps it had something to do with chemo, too.  That's a question I never asked.

It isn't pleasant to think that she is in the hospital, but that's where she needs to be to get the proper care right now.  This is just a bump in the road, and she has already shown so much strength, she is going to do well with this too.  

Gail :)

[ConcernedInNY]

The low counts makes sense to me and its lucky in this day and age they can give her the shots she needs so she can continue with the chemo.

Im just wondering if the blood clot is pure coincidence or if the chemo is the culprit.

Anyway, at least the doctors seem to be on top of this, so I feel like she is in good hands.

[Bananie22]

I just read online that it's very common for counts to drop with chemo.  As far as the blood clot I honestly don't know, but she's probably getting Hep shots to break it up...my sister gets this as well.  Try not to let this development scare you too much, it sounds like they are giving her excellent care.  Keep us posted on your mom.