Mid-July and mid-August I have stabilized as far as my white-blood count, hemoglobin and platelet count are concerned, even though there is evidence that I am becoming resistant to Ibrutinib. I will be having another blood test in mid-September, so we will see what happens.
On another note, the fear in the medical community is cancer patients like me getting Covid. My husband Carl woke up with a serious headache, foggy brain, nausea, extreme fatigue, and body aches. We tested him for Covid and he was positive. He threw up for five days and was miserable. His severe headache lasted a few days and then became milder. His foggy brain lasted 10 days.
This is a man who works out every day doing cardio and weights. He had been vaccinated and had a booster. After two weeks he still tested positive even though he felt better. We slept in separate rooms, used separate bathrooms, and wore masks in the house. I knew it was a matter of time before I tested positive.
I tested negative for the first two days Carl tested positive. Then on the third test, I tested positive. I had barely a headache for a little over a day, and for two days I had a low-grade fever (99 degrees). I had more fatigue than I usually have. My taste and smell were not affected.
NIH suggested a prescription of paxlovid, an anti-viral medicine, which both of us were prescribed. Carl began taking paxlovid the third day he was symptomatic. I took it the first day I tested positive and I believe that helped me from getting a more serious case. The anti-viral medicine is taken for five days in a row (two times a day). Carl reported a terrible and bitter taste in his mouth the first day he took paxlovid. It tasted like metal to him. He has really good taste buds and smelling skills. I do not. I barely could taste the paxlovid the second day, and then it didn’t bother me anymore.
Today is Carl’s second day of testing negative. I have tested negative for the past six days. I really don’t understand why I am the immune-compromised person, yet I got a mild case. My oncologist said that there is still so much we don’t know about Covid and why it affects people differently.
