By Marianne Lincoln

Three years ago, April 2020, I was helping a friend move out of her home into assisted living. I had lots of boxes, because I had just moved myself the summer before. She really needed the help because of lung cancer and COPD. There was no one to warn me about the termites in her deck. The board I stepped on looked perfectly fine from the top. That is, until that two by four snapped in the center and my left toes were on the ground. Of course, everyone had gone home and I was alone at the time. Did I mention my leg was wider than the opening? I had my phone and tried to call the neighbor, who did not answer. 911 was the next option, but I managed by then to get my left leg out of the depths below the deck. Lots of bruising, but no broken bones. I went home, raised it up, and applied lots of ice.

The doctors had nothing to recommend at the time except ice, time, some pain med and watch for any signs of a blood clot. No one directly addressed the limping. It hurt. It was hard to put weight on it. Finally in April 2021, I convinced someone to do an MRI, yet the doctor never followed up. Later that year, I approached a different orthopedic doctor and a knee replacement was recommended. There was just one catch, I had also just been diagnosed with stage IIIa ovarian cancer. The knee would have to wait.

All of 2022 was about treating the cancer, the going bald, being exhausted, nauseous and finally finishing treatment with a diagnoses of NED – no evidence of disease. By Christmas, I had a soft coat of fur on my head again. I went from long straight blonde hair to curly gray hair. Now I look like my mother.

Somewhere in this period, my 2nd husband broke his neck in a motorcycle accident, my sister’s boyfriend had a stroke, my niece was diagnosed with cancer and I caught COVID also. 2022 was not an easy year.

As 2023 began, I trotted off to the orthopedic again and was told my BMI was too high for Washington State’s surgical standards. 15 pounds and 3 months later, I squeaked through the approval and on June 29, I got my left knee replaced. True to form, it couldn’t be that easy. My allergy to fluoride started me on a rough ride through anesthesia. The nurses sent me home in spite of being unable to stop me from regularly accessing what they call the “party bags.”

After 2 weeks, and a bunch of Zofran, my nausea subsided, but another problem crept up. Apparently, someone should have warned me to stop taking that other preventative med I had for cancer. As it turns out, its purpose is to kill fast growing cells, that includes red and white blood cells and platelets, which my recently remodeled leg needed for repairing itself. Suspecting there was a reason I was winded from walking a mere 10 feet, I went into the lab for a blood test Friday afternoon, July 21.

Just after 6 pm, my doctor called me on the phone. I wasn’t surprised. I had read the results that just came in on MyChart. His words, “Go to the emergency room, take another blood test and make sure that was not an anomaly. If not, get a transfusion. One more thing, whatever you do, don’t fall down.”

My little Pacman cancer drug had eaten up all my platelets since surgery. 3 is not a good number for platelets, really. It should be 150 to 450. My fingerstick for a blood sugar test at the emergency room could not stop bleeding. What a disaster. I was given a platelet transfusion and sent home Saturday morning when I tested high enough for them to know I would not bleed to death in 2 days. I was back for more platelets by Thursday.

Finally, this week I am starting to turn it all around. My platelets have learned to reproduce and are in the normal range. My white cells are low normal, but my red blood cells just skidded under the radar, never getting low enough to be boosted. So, I am recovering slower than expected from knee surgery because getting enough oxygen to exercise is difficult if there are not enough red blood cells to transport it around my body. This week, the reds only rose slightly. I am rooting for the red team, they have work to do. No, I still will not eat liver. But the iron supplement I never before needed is now at the table.

I am progressing fine with the knee in physical therapy, although due to the blood thing, they have been going easier on me and checking my oxygen saturation a lot. I have been staying home and missing a lot of summer events I would normally attend. That is really frustrating me.

If you have an important story, send it to me. I can still work at the computer, but I also sleep a lot. There has been far more healing to do than I ever expected. Thank you to my neighbor who got frustrated that I let the dandelions go to seed and mowed many of them for me today. (Not all, just what was near his place; he is not young either.) I would have, but I just couldn’t do it. I have called in some friends for assistance. I am getting better, just slower than expected.

So there has not been a lot on the Post recently, but there is more to come. Expect much more in the next few days as I am finally able to keep from falling asleep on the keyboard. I am really looking forward to running up a flight of stairs again. Most new houses are 2 story. I need to show a few. Post-op exam today was good.

I have never seen my fingernails so pale. Good grief!

P.S. platelets are peach colored.