Julie,
My counts would fall in the 9 - 11% range regularly. My Dr will give the growth factors below 10% and transfusions below 8%. Unfortunately since I have blood clot issues and remain on Lovenox, I am not allowed the growth factors as they will cause havoc (make me throw clots).
When I was initially hospitalized I ended up with 10 units of blood---4 before surgery; 2 during and 4 after. When my fatigue level is high I have actually hoped my hemoglobin would be low enough for a transfusion as it truly a jump start.
I am currently off my trial because of too many sores that will not heal....but my counts are decent. sigh.
Good luck
Teri
Thanks for all the advice and input. I am less anxious about a blood tranfusion. My hemoglobin was 8.9 but my oncologists does a blood transfusion when it reaches 8...hopefully a healthy diet will help. Thanks again. Julie
Part 2 .. I did/do eat spinach in my salads and I happen to like liver so would have that about once-a-month. Other foods contain iron, too.
My MD quit using aranesp .. some side effects are not good. He treats severe anemia with blood transfusions.
My # got into the mid 9's and my onco. uses below 9 as a time for a blood transfusion. In the meantime, he put me on HEMAX .. an iron pill that also contains a stool softener and vitamin C (iron needs C for absorption). I also took one ferrous sulfate (another iron pill). The HEMAX is new and needs an Rx .. the ferrous sulfate is over the counter. My #'s went into the 10's and held. Iron is constipating, so I took stool softeners and/or Miralax daily. Hope this helps.
I aslo suffered from amnia when in chemo, and for a long time afterwards. eat lots of spinach red meat etc. What about iron pills etc. I've had 3 blood transfusions since july of 08. they are a breeze. it's like putting in a new battery. it really works well.. i still suffer from anemia, but not that bad as i need another transfusion yet.
I had an aranesp shot every time I took chemo. Worked for me. Are they giving you one?
Do you (or have you ever) had Procrit or aranesp? Both are colony stimulating factors that raise red blood cell counts. I had it weekly when in chemo. I also had more blood transfusions than I can count, too, and never had any problems from them. It just takes a long time, and would require a night in the hospital just to finish it. It was at it's worst when I was on Topotecan.
If you can get either of the shots, that could make the difference between getting the 10% reduction or the full dose of your next chemo.
Best wishes to you!
Gail
Hi - My mom has had several blood transfusions for different reasons during her chemo treatments. The cut off for the red blood cell count was 8 - if it was 8 or below, they would do a transfusion. A lot of times after chemo you will have a few days when everything is very low, but usually bounces back by itself. The transfusions arent bad and can make you feel a lot better. They will make sure you dont have a reaction to the blood and send you home with a sheet of some side effects if there is a reaction. My mom never had one.
Hope everything works out
Therre should be a cut off point the Doc uses to determine a transfusion. What was your level? I had a transfusion once during chemo. It was a breeze and believe me, well worth it, like having IV energy!!!!!