Today's check-up

Steve's monthly appointment with his oncologist, Dr. M, was this morning. His lab results show that his white cells and neutrophils are still in good shape. (To get blood for today's test, the lab tech had to access a vein in his bicep. The veins in his hands and inside his elbows just aren't accessible.)

After a long discussion, we all agreed that Steve would delay his next cycle of chemotherapy by another week. His body could use the extra seven days to recover and get strong enough for the next round of toxins.

We also agreed that he'll drop the dose -- to what we're not yet sure. He's been taking 300 mg daily, which is double what he took during radiation therapy. Dr. M prefers a lower dose, but she went along with the opinion of our M.D. Anderson oncologist, who wanted to be very aggressive right away.

Dr. M is afraid that if Steve has another week of 300 mg of Temodar daily, there's a good chance his blood counts will drop again, making him again dangerously susceptible to infection, which would require hospitalization. We just can't take that risk.

My guess is that he'll start back on July 21 with 200 mg -- still a lot of chemotherapy to attack any mean ol' tumor cells roaming his brain.

She emphasized that Steve needs to rest often right now and lower his exposure to lots of germs. (So today he missed a birthday lunch with our nieces at Chuck E. Cheese.) She encouraged him to continue working but to cut back if he needs to -- to allow his body to strengthen.

We continue to be concerned about his blood oxygen level, which today measured between 91 and 93, down from the high 90s last week. He sounds so winded when he talks -- not a weak voice like earlier this year but breathy and winded. Dr. M thought she heard two small crackles in his chest and sent us to another UT-SW building for chest X-rays, just to be safe. He sees a pulmonologist next Thursday. We hope to get more answers then.

Recap:
1. Today's blood counts were good.
2. Chemo will wait another week and will be at a lower dose.
3. Steve needs to allow his body time to recover.
4. Pulmonology appointment is next week.