When to take neupogen

[jamimapuddle]

I was just informed by my doc that my WBC is 1.5 and my anc is 675.  He wants me to start taking neupogen twice a week and he has informed me that if my numbers go back up he will switch me to once a week, he is insisting on this even after I told him that I was recovering from the flu the day I got my blood work! I would have prefered to get another WBC to see if my numbers will recover after my bout of the flu (which I think they probably would). I really don't want to take a drug that may or may not give me cancer, I mean I'm doing this tx so I have a shot at a long life...

How can I get around this without being pulled off tx? Today is fri., he wants me to start the neupogen tomorrow when it arrives in the mail. I can't get a second opinion on a sat., so what the hell should I do?

Any suggestions and/or opinions or studies on neupogen?

[cajunldy]

I am 1 1/2 yrs post.  1.5 is really low.  Tx is a balancing act.  In order to continue with your dosage on tx you should take the shots and go forward.  Just my suggestion.

I am also giving my husband procritt once a week for Hodgkins Chemos. Now and again I have to give him Neulasta when those counts go down. I go through blood and platelett transfusions with him when he needs them so he can keep going with the chemos.  He has been through 6 different chemo regiments since his stem cell transfusion (that did not work) and I don't think the one he is on right now is working either.

Anything today can give you cancer my friend.  Even the air you breath.  See that is what hodgkins is cause from Enviromental Toxins.  

I wish when I was on tx that I had the rescue drugs for blood counts, it would have made things easier for me.  Just my opinion.  

Good Luck with your decision.

Cajun

[fuzzy1dar]

I can relate to what you're saying!  My WBC wnet down to 1.4 and Neut .5 when I had to start neupogen 2 months ago. My first injection of 480mcg brought my anc up to 2.0 so I have been taking it every two wks now or when needed.  I recently found out that it can or cannot cause cancer.....so not wanting to take it either.  The way I see it is if I want to stay on tx I have to take it or reduce the peg and I dont' really like that idea either.  What day do you take your INF and how far into tx are you?

best wishes to you.....

[willows]

Well, the mail is fabulously unpredictable, what if the neupogen didn't arrive till monday?  There are physicians clinics that might order you a WBC if you explained the issue on just a walk in basis.  

On the other hand, so many folks here have taken neupogen and other than the annoying side effects, I have never heard of the cancer issue.  Low numbers is a VERY serious issue to continuing treatment.....seems like something to consider.  Tx is all a balancing act, anyway, isn't it?  We all do whatever it takes to get thru the 48 weeks...rescue drugs, extra rest, myself...I ate one heck of a lot of popsicles but still lost about 40 lbs.  If my viral load had rebounded, the doc was ready to take me off anyway from my "wasting away" symptoms.  My blood levels stayed at 10, which is the mark right before rescue drugs.....and I drug my butt around for 12 weeks.

So, maybe the mailman is slow, you get an extra few days to process and resolve your concerns and maybe you can find somewhere to do another WBC.  Stay strong, there is always an answer...as long as you can keep up the energy to find it.  

That said, I'm faced with the prospect of retreating next year...I hope I'm brave enough to follow my own advice.  It's always so much easier to dish it than take it.  

Good luck,
Willow