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Monocytes are WAY up

I don't know if I can attribute an absolute monocyte count of 9 thou/cumm (3 times higher than mine has ever been, and about 10 times normal), to riding my bike in the extreme heat Sunday and Monday, but something sure caused that spike.

For reference, monocytes protect against blood-borne pathogens, moving quickly to sites of infection in the tissues.

I sure don't feel any different, and the way I was climbing on the bike the last two days, I can't imagine anything being wrong.

Of course I have been under a lot of stress the past two weeks, so maybe that has had an effect.

Fortunately all my other counts were stable, not necessarily normal, but at least stable, and Edie's creatinine only climbed slightly which is some what of a relief. Her platelets have continued to fall however, but that is to be expected from the Velcade as well as the plasmapheresis.

Still we'll have a lot to discuss with Edie's regular oncologist (thank goodness she's back from vacation) when we visit her this afternoon.

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