Diagnosis: Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). A Journey

George was scheduled for a regular infusion appointment on the morning of Friday, December 1st. But at about 3:00 a.m. he awoke with some pretty wicked back pain. We had no idea what was causing it but we have been here before. He had awful back pain while in the hospital, but mercifully it went away after several days. Not only was he having back pain, he was still short-winded, so walking anywhere was a challenge.

He managed to get into the car and we were off to the hospital. I turned the seat heater on and hoped that would help a bit. We made it to the parking garage, and George’s back was still killing him. The pain took his breath away.

We had sent a message to Dr. Lai before we left and told her about the debilitating back pain. A nurse called while we were on the way to the hospital and asked George to go to radiology and get a CT scan. We had plenty of time before his infusion to go get the scan, so we headed to radiology. It was a slow walk, with George’s pain and weakness of his legs and shortness of breath. When we got there, I saw a row of wheel chairs and grabbed one, thinking that would make his life easier. It did!

After the CT scan, I wheeled George over to the infusion center for his platelet and cryo infusions. His back was hurting so badly, it was hard to talk. He displayed such discomfort that the infusion nurse called the on-call oncologist to come and see him. Dr. Pain (that is his actual name…I am not making it up!) gave him 10mg of oxycontin. That didn’t do much. He gave him another 10 mg, later and still…pain. He also gave him a muscle relaxer. So, he said, being a Friday and with the weekend coming up, he highly recommended he go to the ER where they could do some imaging of his back right away. He said if he ordered it, it could take 2-3 days. So, after his infusion was done, he was transported to the ER.

From now on, when I try to picture what hell on earth is, I will envision our experience at the UPenn emergency room. We got there at around 6:30 and waited NINE HOURS to be called back. Yes, at 3:30 a.m. we heard them call ‘BLACKWELL!” I was punchy and so was George…and in pain.

Hallmark Christmas movies played on an endless loop the entire time we were there. I guess it could be worse.

When he was finally called back, it was such a relief to be away from the noise, the florescent lights, and the unwashed masses.

At 4:00, a doctor finally came in to assess George and said they were going to order some imaging of his back. I asked how long he would be in the ER and the answer I got was “quite a while.” So, I decided to make the hour drive home to let the dog out and get some rest while George was treated and he waited for a bed to become available on the oncology floor so he could be admitted. Let me tell you…that drive home was a challenge! It was a struggle to remain in the realm of reality, I was so tired and punchy! But, I made it.

After taking care of the dog and washing the ER filth off my face and hands, I fell into bed and slept for 3 hours…until George called me at 8:00.

(To be continued…….)