Perhaps one of the most difficult aspects of leukemia treatment is the long hospitalizations most patients must endure.  This is because the chemotherapy given to most people with leukemia is very strong and wipes out much of their bone marrow, leaving just the stem cells behind.  It takes several weeks for the stem cells to regenerate the bone marrow.  During this time, patients are susceptible to infections due to very low white blood cell counts.  Other things, like red blood cells, clotting factors and other blood components, are also very low during this time and many leukemia patients require blood transfusions. In my own experience over the course of four chemotherapy treatments, I spent anywhere from three weeks to six weeks at a time in the hospital in 1988. So how did I cope?  I relied on my wonderful dad to move me in to my hospital room each time and bring my survival kit of things along with me.  Towards the end of my treatment, my survival kit expanded to fill … [Read more...]