Kristin "Kourageous" Katich

Just a quick update folks. Kristin had labs done yesterday. drum roll please.......... WBC 5.6, HGB 13.6, PLATES 322, ANC 2166. I suspect they will increase her daily oral meds a stitch. School is going well and we told her we are expecting straight A's as she has a light academic load this semester. Either way, she works hard and that is what matters. She has a bit of a cold, sore throat and is very tired, but no fever!!! With these labs I am not too worried. As always, your love, support and concern are appreciated more than you will ever, ever know!

First things first .....a HUGE thank YOU to our good friend Tammy Brunst for escorting Kristin to her clinic visit. I worried all morning and hated the fact that I was not there. As hard as that is, I know she is exactly where she should be and so, so happy. You are the best Tammy and we love you!! Kristin's recent labs are WBC 5.2 great, HGB 13.3 great, PLATES 354 you guessed it...great, ANC 2.7 great. What does this all mean? The daily oral regime can begin again at 25% and then it will be adjusted as per her labs to see what she can tolerate. We all know she does not tolerate the meds at 100% so I am hoping that we don't go there again. We have gone down that road one too many times (I think it has been at least 3 or 4 times) with unpleasant consquences resulting in having to hold all chemo. I know it is through trial and error to find the right balance, but I am hoping there will be smoother waters for the duration of maintenance. Looking back through maintenance thus far...

I am now home and Kristin remains in Provo. She is settling into her routine of the daily iv antibiotics Gentamicin and Levaquin. (i hope i spelled those right) The Picc line is not as uncomfortable now and she is figuring out how to work with it a little better each day. As of today her ANC hoovers at 596. This is so much better than the last week. For you or I, our ANC (absolute neutrophil count...those awfully important, bacteria fighting, white blood cells that help fight infection) is around 5000, give or take. During maintenance the goal is for this count to dance between 1000-2000. I have no doubt that by the time her next appointment comes around next week she will be within the desired range. The pseudomonas aeruginosa is responding well to the meds. Although we are both a bit frustrated with the fact that she was discharged without any wound care instruction. I am not surprised by this. It is quite nasty and painful and I am not sure quite how to approach the dressing changes...

At the start of the day, Kristin and I resolved ourselves to the fact that she would be held hostage for at least two more days as per the resident who spoke with us. There were no improvements on her labs today and the resident said she wanted to see a little more improvement before she went home. Together we conjured up a whirlwind of top notch activities. "we could catch up on the OC, take naps, lots of naps, change the sheets, google gross pictures of pseudomonas', order take out from food service,(actually they do a pretty darn good job if you were to compare this hospital to the others we've frequented), wait with anticipation for Oprah, maybe another nap, zzzzzzzzzz. Then, there was a whisper of good news ... maybe. Evidently the resident was not quite right. Nay, the attending had other ideas. Since the cultures were negative, she had been afebrile (without fever) for 24 hours, and the abcess was not worsening, they felt it was safe to send her home. Even with an ...

fever, neutropenic, cultures, specimens, pseudomonas,PICC line, tears, conscience sedation, antibiotics, fortaz, gentamicin, dagdabit!

Well, Christmas was peaceful. Our family is humbled and grateful to be able to celebrate yet another Christmas together. Kristin was able to spend her winter break with us and left for P-Town just in time for New Years. Thank you AJ for letting her ride back with you. Next...I am packing a suitcase, tidying up the house, and finishing laundry to fly out to Salt Lake as we speak. Kristin was admitted for neutropenia and a possible secondary infection. I know....I was shocked when they called and said she was neutropenic. We had talked a few times today. This morning she said she had a large, red bump on her shoulder; yep, call it what it is, a zit, or so we thought... Later in the afternoon she said she was feeling feverish. Well, you know the drill. Take the temp, call it in and see what they say. I know what they will say....You need to be checked. By this point she is thinking she just has a spider bite, but it had grown to the size of a silver dollar. I said," I don't know ...