one facsinating tid bit after another

Called the hospital just now and Margie and Robert were doing "laps" around the floor. She has to clock a minimum of 5,000 steps a day as not to get atrophied.
Yesterday I learned a facsinating bit about Leukemia cells which underlines how little we know about cancer:
Leukemia cells make their own cholesterol. (sneaky little bugger that it is) and that cholesterol has the ability to block chemotherapy. So that the chemotherapy can penetrate the L cell, Margie is taking what amounts to about 16 times the normal dosage of cholesterol lowering drug (sorry, don't know name) and that drug disarms the L cell and takes away some of its defense. Interesting or what?

So here's a run down of the factoids (of course they change all the time, so I am accountable for nothing)

-10 days of this cholesterol lowering drug (began on thursday)

-on day 3 of the 10 she'll start 4 days of chemo/24 hour drip through her central line (that's the hickman catheter in her chest)

-after the 10 days and her numbers come back up, she'll then undergo spinal and cranial radiation

-she's been warned that this chemo dose is much more aggressive than her original induction so there are likely to be side-effects (no body goes through this with nothing, right?)

-yesterday had to get infusion of blood product because her platelets numbers and hematacrit numbers were dropping. Which essentially means that the Leukemia is becoming "active"

From what I understand of the nurses and staff at the University hospital, they are fantastic. I just spoke with one of them briefly and she seemed to already know so much about Margie and Robert, and expressed such a warm level of care and enthusiasm for her, it sure makes me feel assured and confident.

Love to you all,
Kathleen