White blood cell count...

I had my first blood draw today since starting chemo...not fun at all since the person drawing it had such a hard time getting a good vein. He poked at my right arm with no luck and finally got a good amount of blood from my left arm. I better get used to that because I will have to continue to get my blood drawn every time I get chemo (about 24-48 hours prior) so that my Doctor can see how all of my blood counts look, etc. It is normal during chemo for people's white blood cell count to go down below normal, which is why I have to be careful not to be around any sick people, and be extra cautious around large crowds, touching public doors, etc. Our white blood cells are what protect us from infectious disease and other nasty junk. I was told not to get any pedicures during chemo since I am more prone to getting infection...total bummer since I love treating myself to one every now and then :(

Basically at 25 years old, I have to be protected like a newborn baby would be. They can give you a shot to boost your white blood cell count, and I am not sure whether I will need one when I do my second chemo tomorrow or not...we shall see tomorrow. I have already gotten my results back from my blood draw today and I find it interesting that before starting chemo, my white blood cell count was 7.9 K/uL, the standard range is 3.5-12.5 K/uL, so I was pretty much right in the middle and now after just one chemo, my WBC count is 3.0 K/uL. It is lower than standard, so I will definitely not be going anywhere near a large crowd anytime soon...no Costco on a Saturday or Target on a Sunday for me! :) I will have to be extra cautious now. 

I was told if my white blood cell count gets too low (not sure what that exact number is) that they will postpone chemo by a week or so until they can get it back up...I want to avoid that since that would mean a longer treatment time. So I am hoping that they stay high enough before each treatment for me to at least still get the chemo right on schedule every two weeks as planned...fingers crossed!