Highs and Lows: St. George Trip and March 19th Clinic Visit

St. George Trip 



After almost four months of being isolated at home, Colton's doctors approved him to leave the valley for a few days.  Colton was in heaven; he swam, played in the sand, went fishing, took lots of walks, caught lizards and played with his little brother.  His mood improved and, for the first time in months, we finally saw a glimpse of our sweet, happy boy. His smile says it all.

 

March 19th Clinic Visit



Colton had his blood drawn today and, disappointingly, all three cell lines went down.  It looks like we are just playing the waiting game again, which is very frustrating.  Since Colton's ANC is 500, we have to go to the ER for any fevers.  Since his platelets are low, we have to be careful he doesn't hit his head.  And since red blood cells are low, we have to watch for loss of energy.  The doctors are running a retic count to make sure his body is still producing red blood cells. Unfortunately it was a bad day with no answers.  We will meet with Colton's doctors next Wednesday and decide on a plan for his treatment.

 

Stats From Today's Visit:

• White Blood Count (WBC) - 3.6 (normal range is 6.0 to 17.0)
• Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) - .5 (normal range is above 1.5)
• Platelets - 50 (normal range is 150 to 700)
• Hemoglobin (HGB) - 8.3 (normal range is 11.5 to 13.5)
• Hematocrit (HCT) - 27.0 (normal range is 34.0 to 40.0)
• Red Blood Count (RBC) - 3.03 (normal range is 3.9 to 5.3)
• Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) - 89.1 (normal range is 75.0 to 87.0)

Colton had his blood drawn by his favorite phlebotomist, Ryan, today!  Only one poke!