Mobilization Day 1

I reported to the Feinberg building at 07:30am and was walked over through a long underground tunnel and admitted to the 15th floor of the Prentice Hospital on the Northwestern campus.  The 15th and 16th floor at Prentice is the isolation section where all of Northwestern patients receive chemo for a variety of diseases.  I'm in a very nice private room and the staff has been VERY friendly and helpful.  Food menu is an a la carte menu with many healthy choices and is served upon request from 6:30am - 9:00pm.  The staff also has stashes of food on the 15th floor to satisfy those late night cravings.

When I got to my room the nurse drew some labs and all came back normal.  She also conducted a rectal swab to check me for strains of Vancomycin-resistant enterococci bacteria
(http://www.medicinenet.com/vancomycin-resistant_enterococci_vre/article.htm)
which they take special precautions for due to the serious risks involved, especially with other immune compromised patients on this floor.

I started IV hydration just before lunch to prepare for chemo.  Nurses had a little trouble finding a good vein, but after 3 sticks we were in business and there has been no discomfort with the IV throughout the day.  The nurses tried to get a catheter in me, but had issues making it down to my bladder and after 2 attempts (and me crying like a little baby) they decided to utilize other methods to mitigate chemo effects on my bladder (thank God!).

Chemo was started at 7:00pm and completed 2 hours later.  They gave me meds to alleviate nausea and steroids to reduce inflammation before the chemo and I haven't experienced any issues yet.  It's expected that I'll be neutropenic (White Blood Cell (WBC) count very low and I'm vulnerable to infection) in 7-9 days, but it's only expected to last 1-2 days and then my WBC should be back up to normal.

Looking out my window it looks as if the blizzard has already started...glad I only have to make it across the street to my hotel tomorrow.  I'll probably be discharged in the afternoon sometime.  The next several days should be uneventful...I'll post the next update when there are significant changes.

Thanks again for all your prayers and support!!