Neulasta shots

[SBeth]

My husband is in the final stretch of weekly chemo (taxol & carbo). He receives every Monday. Today he was given a shot of Neulasta and orders were written for him to return to the cancer center tomorrow thru Saturday for a daily shot of Neulasta. He didn't have a chance to speak to the his oncologist or the nurse regarding the reasons for these shots, but assumed his counts were too low. Just wondering if it is common to get daily injections for a week, or are his counts so severe that this is needed? In the months past he has only received shots of Procrit every other week or so. Any information would be appreciated.

[Addie]

Is it Neulasta or Neupogen shots he'll be getting? I ask, because I got a shot of Neulasta after each chemo cycle....but ONLY one shot. I was told that Neupogen shots were given more often...but with Neulasta, generally only one shot at the end of the three days of chemo, was sufficient!

Both Neupogen and Neulasta are to boost white blood cells (WBCs) and Procrit or Aranesp shots are for red blood cells (RBCs).

You can ask for a copy of his bloodwork and track for yourself, just where his numbers are. My RBCs did drop a bit below the normal range the last three cycles of chemo and while my WBCs went down too...they never actually dropped below the normal range. Some people though, have a much more severe drop and you don't want those WBCs dropping too low or it leaves you vulnerable to infection!

Don't know if this helps answer your questions..but you could call one of your onc's nurses to double check. I used to pester the nurses with any questions I forgot to ask the doc!

[paddy]

Yes,, if I remember rightly Dave had a shot of Neulasta every day after chemo. Paddy