Friday, July 21, 2017

Ask Three Doctors, Get Three Answers: The Palbociclib Blues

I feel fine, but my white cell count is slightly above that of a corpse. I'm in the range where, according to my physician friend E., I should retire to a bubble: "Don't travel! Don't go outside! Don't be in crowds! Avoid anyone with a cold!"
But I want to live
Today, I went to the main railway station, took a train, while surrounded by people, all of us squishing past each other and angling for seats, to a neighboring city, where I took a ballet class. Steamy, sweaty people gripped barres and little droplets of perspiration flew around the room. After class, I got back on the train, came home. Every step of the way--after I pushed the button to open the tram door, after I gripped the back of a seat so as not to fall down, after I opened my locker--I slathered on hand sanitizer, to the point where my skin is really, really dry, so then I get out the Eucerin. Hand santizer is my holy water--and I'm not even religious.

I didn't go for my friend E.'s answer--even though she's a really hotshot doctor--so I asked another doctor, who said: "Nooooo, you don't have to stay home. Just take the precautions you are taking, and don't kiss anybody who has a cold."
My husband doesn't have a cold. We do a lot of kissing. My daughter does have a cold, so I haven't hugged her for a week, but I do bring her cups of tea and jump back when she coughs. So far, I'm not sick.
Doctor number three reminded me that I'm better off sticking with the Palbociclib if I can tolerate the side effects, because otherwise the cancer might come back. "It does with a lot of women," he reminded me. 
I may go for doctor number four pretty soon. Anyone with a cheerful word and a new idea would be fine by me.

2 comments:

  1. We need to get together online. I live in Manhatttan and we have some similar issues. How do I contact you privately?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Would you mind sending your email address? If that doesn't work, I'll send mind and erase it later. I'm possibly going to go off the stuff tomorrow after I see doctors, and I did just find THIS: https://www.iqwig.de/download/A16-74_Palbociclib_Extract-of-dossier-assessment_V1-0.pdf
      I'm no doctor, and the trial I'm in is called something different, not the one they're reporting on, but I think the basics are the same.
      I lived in NYC for over forty years! Eager to talk. If you leave a number, I will call, too, but I am six hours ahead of you.

      Delete