Hives???

[talentx7]

My son had his 2nd dose of cytoxan last Tues. We did blood work last Wed. His WBC count was at a 1.2. He said that was pretty low and to keep him away from others and to repeat blood work this Mon. (12 days after) Well, sat. morning he woke up with hives over his back, chest, arms, and face. I called dr., he told me to benadryll him every 6 hr. Went to bed last night, 10 hrs. later, woke up with hives again. Called dr., said more benadryll and add zyrtec. Anyone have any idea why, no med changes or anything different. Is it because his WBC count? Dr. did give me an answer, i'm not sure he know either.

[pberggren1]

I would ask more questions.

[Sangye]

I don't see how a low WBC count would give him hives. It may be a reaction to one of his drugs.

His WBC count should not be falling that low on ctx. I know my Wegs doc didn't want mine even falling into the 2's. A count of 1.2 is more like what you'd expect with a cancer treatment dose of ctx. I think you need to ask the doctor about both issues.

[talentx7]

Yes sangye, they were surprised to see his WBC count go so low. When he had his first dose in the hospital it only went down to 7.0. I am not sure if they gave him a stronger dose this time or not. He started at a 16.0, so to drop that much, I was shocked and very scarred for his health. As they have us keeping him home and away from everyone. I heard that they drop cancer paitents that much though. I wonder if that is why he was so sick this time. He threw up for 3 days after ctx, when he didn't have any problems in the hospital. As for the hives, i don't get it. He started a BP med 1 week ago. The Dr. thought that was possible, but unlikely. . But no other med change at all.

[Sangye]

Call a pharmacist to ask about the BP drug and also if the hives could be from the ctx. They often know the drugs and side effects better than the docs.

I hate to say this but you really need to make sure they gave him a Wegs-strength dose of the ctx and not a cancer-strength. Call the infusion clinic and talk to the nurses who did the IV. Mistakes like that are not unknown. The combo of hives, vomiting and sudden decrease in WBCs is alarming.

If they gave him the correct dose, it may mean the ctx is too toxic for him. It was for me. Both times I was on it it destroyed my bone marrow faster than I could make it. I knew something was wrong because it made me incredibly weak and took me months to bounce back. When I took it last summer I couldn't even take a therapeutic dose (ie, the dose based on my weight) because of it. Dr Seo was very good about watching the trend and stopped it before it was too late. He said I can never have it again.

[jola57]

I have hives. Not as badly but mostly on my face. I hate taking drugs so I do not take benadryl or other drugs, it clears up with or without them anyway, then the cycle repeats. I noticed that it is mostly whem I take my mtx. But then I suffer from hive for a long time now and I have gotten used to it. I cary a concealer in my purse and just cary on. In your case I would talk to your doc about this. It looks like a strong reaction to something. Check with the pharma as well.

[talentx7]

The drs. think it was a reaction to his BP med. A little weird that he had taken it for 5 days before the hives, but that was the newest med. We changed to a new BP today, we will start taking it tomorrow. Hoping for no hives!!

[Sangye]

Jolanta, I wonder if it's rosacea. I've been having increasing trouble with symptoms the past few months that I feel are rosacea. I have black mold in my basement (just discovered a few weeks ago) and have to move out. While I was hospitalized all the symptoms cleared up.

I also noticed that following a Pitta-pacifying (fire-reducing) diet helped tremendously. Rashes and hives are a fire imbalance.

I'm looking for a new place but having difficulty. There aren't other options for me in terms of temporary housing, even though I'm fully aware of the dangers of living with mold.

[drz]

I don't see how a low WBC count would give him hives. It may be a reaction to one of his drugs.

His WBC count should not be falling that low on ctx. I know my Wegs doc didn't want mine even falling into the 2's. A count of 1.2 is more like what you'd expect with a cancer treatment dose of ctx. I think you need to ask the doctor about both issues.

My rheumatologist stopped my Cytoxan when my WBC got under two. He wants to keep the WBC around 4 or more to try reduce complications and infections.

[Sangye]

Yes, my counts fell way too low also as my bone marrow was failing. I had to stop ctx because of it.

I meant that the doc shouldn't allow the WBC count to fall so low. They have to decrease the dosage or stop it altogether. Some people just can't tolerate ctx.