Taxol 4 of 9

Prior to my Taxol infusion yesterday I had bloodwork done, including ALT, a liver enzyme.  My results were 119 and the upper limit of the specification was 54.  Last time it was checked was on September 4th and it was 60.  I though 60 was a little high, but just barely and since chemo can do some weird things to your bloodwork I didn't think too much of it . . . ok, I worried a little but forgot to ask the doctor about it (I blame chemo-brain).  But now that my results were more than 2x the upper limit I wanted to know what the doctor said.  I sent her an email but did not get a response prior to chemo.  But the nurse was paging her and I specifically asked her to ask about that.  She said that it is high and the doctor will monitor it. Next week when I go in for my routine CBC bloodwork I will also be getting the liver panel.  I also have an appointment with my oncologist on Monday so I can get further clarification.  My google search tells me that they don't really worry about your ALT unless it is 5x the upper limit while on chemo but I will be asking more questions during my appointment.

The actual infusion was pretty uneventful except it lasted longer than normal.  I am not sure if this is because the nurse set it to go slower or if there was more volume.  My DH thought that the bag was bigger so I will also ask the doctor if she had them mix it more dilute or infuse over a longer time.

I had a nurse that I haven't had before and I think she is my new favorite.  Plus I also got a room with a window.  I say "room" but they are more like cubbyholes, but I was excited for the window even though the window was behind me and I couldn't look out (not much of a view anyway) but having natural light just seemed to make the place less industrial.  Here is a picture of my room with a view.

As far as side effects go, so far they are the same as previous ones, decadron steroid high and flushed face, muscle aches (like I just started exercising after a long break), fatigue, and my fingernails looking like they are about to fall off (I'm working on a separate blog post for this with pictures - if you are brave enough to look at them)