Day 118 (Thu 02 Nov)
Fri, 11/03/2006 - 05:56 — endc011
I awoke this morning and had a nice hot bath. We are on a water meter now but did not care. It is clearly cold outside and that is another indication the seasons are changing rapidly.

I spoke with Rachel and there was a frost in Bristol last night. At the time of the 'phone call she and her mum were making their way up to Clifton Village which is probably a 40 minute walk away. As it was cold Fred was double wrapped in his cosy-toe and blankets and was happily peering out in the bright sunlight.

I guess they finally made it to the shops which is a nice collection of independent shops and little lanes which are interesting to explore.

I did not a great deal but tidied and sorted some things on the computer.

I spoke again with Rachel and Fred has had a busy day. He got a bit gripey later in the evening but fell asleep instantly when put in his cot. He slept from 2000h last night to 0600h this morning which was good for all concerned.

Tomorrow he will pop back into hospital where I suppose he will be checked over for the weekend. Hopefully they will let him out for the weekend before he is back on Ward 34 for his block of four chemotherapy sessions next week. This session will likely see all his protection drop once more. The hair that has grown back (now including his mega eye lashes) is likely to fall out again, but might not. The hair can come back totally different than before apparently. It could be blonde or ginger, curly or straight. At the moment it has come back a second time as dark, with a possible wave to it. Who knows next time?

I shall travel back tomorrow and see little man once again. The weather looks bright but cold for the weekend.

Day 117 (Wed 01 Nov)
Thu, 11/02/2006 - 05:07 — endc011
Fred and I enjoyed a quiet night last night once again, in the confines of the hospital. He was due two more sessions of chemotherapy, one starting at about 1900h for three hours, followed by another this morning commencing at about 0600h.

The M and S curry was not bad at all, and I found a naan bread in the 'fridge from a few days ago which was revitalised in the microwave with a bit of water.

The pump ticks away delivering its potency as usual. As with all chemotherapy drugs it is treated with caution by the staff, who wear protective clothing whilst preparing it, as well as installing it. Goggles, full arm sleeves as well as the normal gloves and polythene apron are worn. This is due to the toxicity of the drug, and how it could affect a healthy persons blood cells if they came into contact with it.

The same still goes for us when we deal with any of his body fluids, more predominantly changing nappies, but also if he sicks or wees on us. Normally a tissue or wipe would suffice, but we should get the gloves on first which can be a pain, especially if they are not to hand and things are happening quickly. Usually they are, as we have got used to it now.

He also continues with his eye care in the form of drops, but now an ointment. The drops are every two hours but overnight it is the ointment which is applied. This is mainly to make life easier for everyone, as the two hour drops would cause him more disturbance, as well as us and the staff. The ointment should last the night so he can get some kip.

The drug he is having - Cytarabine - can cause crystals to form in the eyes occasionally, and so this should remove that danger. I spoke with the nurse about it and she said that it only usually occurs if the drops/ointment are not applied diligently, but if you take short cuts then it can be really nasty. She has only seen one case though.

As he wakes for a feed in the night, his old peepers shed the ointment, so I give him some drops again at 0600h just to tide him over until the next lot. We all can do wthout eye problems.
I get a good last few hours sleep, but I am woken by the nurses putting the early morning chemotherapy on again.

I decide to get up and potter about, and have a wash. Fred is making his usual sounds through the en-suite door, but once he realises I am awake properly now, he drifts off back to have another sleep for a bit.

Last night I spoke with the Hotel Services staff who do the cleaning and food service. I did not realise that Fred can have "real" meals that are pureed by the kitchen, and then frozen for re-heating. Anything goes, and there is not any salt or other nasties added. I suppose it is for patients who need pureed food, but I did not think that Fred would qualify for such gourmet delights.

It comes in separate portions so he can have a little bit of each once it cools. The dietitian reckoned it would be worth a try so we will do that.

Rachel and June arrive at the normal time so I jump into the car and head back. Fred will be pleased to see them again.

The weather is really sunny but cold today. Last night it was cold as the heating has yet to be fired up. Fred had four blankets and a hat to keep him warm.

As I pass by Torquay I meet up with some colleagues for lunch which was nice. I was not sure of my timings today, but it worked out well if not a bit short arranged. I later meet up with Amanda and James at her mum and dads. I have not seen James for a few weeks now and he is growing fast. He is a few weeks younger than Fred and is just as dribbly, with the soggiest of hands too.

Mum and dad are fine and I collect my post before plodding home via Three Beaches Wines Store. Lyn and Paul have had a collecting jar on the counter for some while now and more recently have had a photograph of Fred on it. See the photograph in the gallery. From that small tin, customers and staff raised £80.00 for CLIC which will be put to good use soon, with some of the other money raised. My office has raised £125.00 I think, or more too. There has been a number of cake and book sales which have bolstered the cause. Rachel and I, plus Freddie will decide carefully how it will be donated to CLIC as they have helped us so much over the last few months. We do not want it to disappear into the corporate charity pot.

Rachel, her mum and friends will be having a coffee morning too on the 24 November 2006 in Chagford. Both of them have been making scarves, cards and other items for sale as well as taking delivery of other interesting items in time for Christmas. Some of the scarves (which are hairy wool ones in lots of different colours) have sold in the hospital being bought by the nursing staff once they see them. The amount of stuff made is quite amazing.

Tonight I am watching television at home, and alone :(

I later hear that Fred is allowed out from the hospital until Friday, before the doctors want to see him again. On Monday he starts another session of chemotherapy, similar to the on he had in the last few days. His eye drops will last for five days after the last treatment.

I never thought that in the "Archive" section of the 'blog (Home Page, right hand side) we would ever get to the number of months we have now. When I started the 'blog I knew it was an open ended thing but time has flown, and we are now in November - I am still typing away each day, with Frederick's progress. I think we have come a long way since Day 1 (or Day 0?) - July 8 2006.

It was very hot and sticky back in those days and shorts were what I had to wear. Windows open in the flat and hospital and sunglasses when out and about. Now it is big coats and hats, and I have got my gloves out. We used to be able to leave Intensive Care at 2200h and walk home when it was light, and was still muggy.

Since then new people have come in, and new people gone again, all with their own stories, and were all as worried as us in the early days, and after. We have sort of got used to the routine now, and Fred seems to be dealing with it as best he can.

Day 116 (Tue 31 Oct)
Wed, 11/01/2006 - 03:39 — endc011
Fred nodded off at 2145h last night and did not really wake until 0630h for a brief mumble. He was still tired so returned to his slumber, which enabled me to do same. A bit later I woke to read and listen to the news. All rather relaxing. Normally I am tired and have not slept well, and Fred is restless too. He must have been tired.

The nurses came in during the night to disconnect the chemotherapy pump that was running, and check him regularly. He did not stir and even when they started to put eye drops in he dad not wake. He will have these drops during the current course of chemo.

In the early hours of the morning he was re-plumbed to the machine for the next dose of chemotherapy. This also goes on for three hours and by late morning he is free to go. I have a few things to do, and I have a chat with the dietitian. At the moment Fred weighs 7.7kg with a target weight of 8kg, so he is heading that way slowly.

We pop into town but the weather is not very good looking so I do not stray far. Spicy noodles for lunch and which are ones I have not tried before.

The rest of the afternoon is dealing with Fred and heading back to the flat to get some things. Then back to the hospital, for some more chemotherapy. This will go on for a couple of weeks.
Fred is quite unsettled early evening and is not his usual self. He settles after a long cuddle with me and is plopped back into his gro-bag. After some protestation he is fast asleep.

Today is Hallow e'en and the kids in the hospital have been making things and costumes. The canteen was decorated with more cobwebs and spiders. I had some breakfast in there, and it was sort of jolly. The kitchen staff came around later to scare the children but Fred was having none of it. Quite literally really, as he was too small for any of the treats they were giving away.
I am getting settled in to Fred sleeping again all that time, but we will see. I have bought a Marks and Spencers curry and rice tonight as I have yet to find anything that goes in a microwave tasty. I am reliably informed that the curry will be good, so I managed to queue with the commuting masses for a good fifteen minutes. I hope it is worth it.

Day 115 (Mon 30 Oct)
Tue, 10/31/2006 - 04:04 — endc011
After the weekends excitement we are back now, with it being just a memory. It was easy to switch back to hospital mode without too much trouble. Fred knows this as his second (or now first?) home. Either way we got back to Bristol by about 1730h and unpacked our bits and did some washing.

Rachel heads back to Devon early today and I have a bit of a lie in, as does Fred. He is a bit less settled than the last couple of nights but he is playful. Thankfully Rach has packed the pram with all I need, and all I do is try and wheel it down the road. It is loaded with all his meds and new milk (5.5kg worth) plus all the glass milk bottles that have been used over the weekend. I think they get recycled.

I get in and the staff are pleased to see Fred and enquire about his weekend off. It was good to explain to them all the things we did, all of which were things we used to do regularly.
I wheel him in his room which looks tidy. More careful examination reveals the television has vanished, his scales, and more curiously the clock over his bed. I ask the staff who know nothing about it but I later learn some of the TVs were taken somewhere else. As for the clock no one knows.

Fred has his bloods taken and I eventually get sorted to take him to town to meet my mum and dad who are visiting. We have a look around and head out for lunch. Whilst we are there two separate people come up to look at Fred and we chat about him. He is looking particularly cute today.

After that we troop about the town and it starts to drizzle a bit. Dad is again in control of Fred's chariot. Fred is under the polythene cover and snoring.

They eventually head off and so I go back to the flat to get some gear for tonight.

I come back in and get Fred organised. He is due his high dose Cytarabine tonight for the next four days. He is OK to have this now as all his counts have shot up, as expected. He is plumbed in to the pump and is fast asleep. This time he gets eye drops every two hours, so as to ward off any eye infections. He had some on Intensive Care, but it was a gel to stop his eyes from drying. He receives the drops without stirring one bit. Thankfully they will be doing the drops through the night.

Earlier the porter came with a portable TV to replace the shiny silver one I had before. I recognised this as the one I hoofed out a few months ago as it did not work. I left it where it was and decided I would read my book.

Later on, I sitting in the darkened room staring into space thinking what to eat, when Kate the Ward Sister asked why I was not watching Coronation Street. I explained what had happened and in a few minutes a TV had arrived from one of the other closed beds. I can now watch my TV tonight as well as the news in the morning.

Fred is now fast asleep and I will wake him later to feed him and put him in his gro-bag. Hopefully he will have a peaceful night with this drug, though it is more potent than before.

Day 114 (Sun 29 Oct)
Sun, 10/29/2006 - 18:21 — endc011
Yesterday was a really relaxing day for us all, and Fred once again slept like a baby.
We are heading back today so I am listening to the Archers, and Fred is having his own lie in. He is in some fleecy blue pyjamas, and with the heating on in the room is very comfortable indeed.

I am eating the last bit of turkey and ham pie we had last night. Have not had a shop bought pie so nice for ages, though it was from the butchers in Preston. He said he had made it that morning and there would not be any "air gaps" in the filling. Have not found any yet.

We will load all his stuff back up and it is lunch at grannies. I hear it is a bit of beef.

The clocks have gone back. All the clocks have stopped in our house so we do not have to do much other than the one in the bathroom.

Day 113 (Sat 28 Oct)
Sun, 10/29/2006 - 06:02 — endc011
Just as I was finishing last evenings 'blog the nursing staff asked whether we would like to return to Torbay for the weekend, as Fred was well enough, as his bloods had come back all in order. His counts are up so he is able to deal with infection better now than recently, and he is fine all 'round.

They said that he does not need to be back until Monday PM for any further treatment so really we could go there and then. This was a bit of a shock for us, as we did not reckon on this situation. We chatted it through and they rang through to Torbay Hospital to advise them that Fred would shortly be "in their area" and arranged details between each other if Fred encountered problems. Our main fears are Fred becoming ill outside of his normal hospital due to high temperature or a line infection..

We scooped up the various things that accompany Fred nowadays and at 1830h headed over the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and joined the south bound M5 home. In the rain.
The last time Fred used this long long stretch of road was when he was with the retrieval team in an ambulance coming up here on blues and twos in early July, and being dangerously ill.
We got back at around 2030h and he settled well in his faithful armchair that had remained in the corner of the sitting room. He watched television whilst we pottered around him. We ordered a curry that was delivered and relaxed at home for the first time in four months.
He slept really well in his cot and rose at 0530h for his feed. Then he was asleep for the next few hours whilst we slowly got up. I had my bath in deep hot water whilst listening to the radio.
We went over to my mum and dads with Fred and had some breakfast. The Gramps Wills were entertained by Fred for a while and dad had a cuddle with the Little Man. Fred was on form for them both.

We then popped over to see Wayne and Claire for a bit and he go some extra cuddles, for which he was grateful.

From there we went into town and did all the things we would normally do on a Saturday with Fred. It was good to have him back home again and it did not seem he had been away at all. All those months in hospital disappeared for a short while.

We popped back into mum and dads at the end of the afternoon and Fred fell asleep on the living room floor on a towel. He had spent quite a while kicking his legs this afternoon and so contentedly fell asleep in front of everyone.

I spoke to our friend Dawn and we chatted about Fred being home. They came over in the evening for an impromptu bite to eat and a drink and it was a really good night. One of Fred's biggest fans - Emily - came along later on too, and we had a lovely evening.

Fred has had the best "normal" day today ever and had enjoyed the change immensely. This was a day that, back in early July was he was admitted to Bristols Intensive Care Unit, we did not think we would ever see. He has dealt with a lot by himself, but to come home, looking and feeling "normal", is so wonderful for us.

It is now 2330h and Fred has been asleep for a bit. He is happy where is, arms above his head in a gro-bag, snoring, and I hope that is because he is back home, and the people today he met are ones he remembered meeting more than 112 days ago. All of those people he met have visited him at his bedside in Bristol at some time in the past few months. There are others I wish we had time to visit but could not because of time.

Tomorrow we will go the Chagford and see Freds other Grampies for lunch then head back to Bristol.

Day 112 (Fri 27 Oct)
Sat, 10/28/2006 - 00:05 — endc011
After Fred's jaunt to the Zoo he was well behaved in the evening and went off to bed as normal. I think he feels happier in his own little environment, and knows that we are nearby but doing ordinary things which he can watch.

He sleeps well during the night and also feeds well. He cleared his bottle of 175ml last night in a few minutes which means no more stuff down the NG tube. Quicker for us, more natural for him though we must be careful he does not feed too quickly. You can however extract quite a lot of excess air from his stomach by the NG tube if needed. It is not unusual to suck out 60mls of wind. We would only do that when testing the tube however. Nothing can replace the ritual of winding him properly though.

We have breakfast and are due in the hospital for some bloods taken and then we hope we can go out again. However, they are taken and it is still 1710h and we are awaiting the results. I am not sure what we are waiting for exactly, as he is probably OK to come back with us, as he has nothing planned. We wait in any case as it raining outside.

I use the opportunity to go and get him the rubber ring seat my mum and dad wanted to get him. Did not stock it in Torquay but they have it here. Hopefully he can relax in a more supportive chair, which will strengthen the muscles in his neck.

If we are home early enough tonight I want to make a steak and ale pie if I can. Normally I would make my own shortcrust pastry but there are not any scales at the flat. Or at least i have not found them. I will bring some from home I think.

Fred has been chirpy all day today and is beginning to flag a bit. He has been shouting alot today making new noises.

Rachel has just come in to say we have the all clear to come back on Monday! Not sure what we have planned though. Have not had this situation for a bit. Need to check with the staff how far we can go safely. After nearly four months here you tend to be reluctant to leave the "safety net" of the hospital just in case Fred comes over "all funny" again.....

Day 111 (Thursday 26th October 2006)
Fri, 10/27/2006 - 01:40 — endc011
It was heavy rain again last evening as we pushed Fred back up St Michaels Hill. Once again he was locked into his own little plastic cloche.

Once back he happily settled into life back at the flat and went off to bed at about 2000h.
Fred was a bit unsettled during the night and sang loudly during the early hours. He rose earlier than usual though I managed a lie in until 1000h.

We have the whole day to ourselves and do not have to in into the hospital. I think that this is second time in nearly four months we have been able to escape.

We decide to go to Bristol Zoo. Fred used to visit Paignton Zoo regularly before he was taken ill. Normally it would have cost us £11.00 each to go in but we have a pass from home that works here. This means free entry which is a bonus.

The last time I was here was when I was a child. It was really good and Fred enjoyed the fresh air. Different to Paignton but familiar. A lot more compact but still a few hours entertainment. And it is a welcome break from our normal day.

At the moment Fred is having mashed sweet potato and is getting in a real mess. He finds grabbing the spoon most amusing. He has just had a nice bath and is now relaxing in his moo suit. He has just guzzled 130ml of milk in just a few minutes so we have to slow him down.
We have checked his mouth and the ulcers seem to have receded and he is generally a happier little boy.

He will be due a visit to the hospital again tomorrow morning.

Day 110 (Wed 25 Oct)
Thu, 10/26/2006 - 00:14 — endc011
Last night I met up with Wayne and we visited the Embassy once more, and left a little fuller! Good to catch up on the gossip though.

I travelled back through the heavy rain and there was a lot of surface water on the motorway. It amazes me that in such reduced visibility there are still clowns in 7.5t hired lorries doing 90mph in lane three oblivious to the weather conditions.
I get here just as Fred, Rachel and June are setting off to the coach station. Fred looks very well indeed but has a blood shot eye. Only a little spot, but apparently caused by his great fists. He is allowed out of the hospital now for a day or two as they won't start his next bit of chemotherapy until next week now. His counts are slowly rising which is good. Hopefully the weather will improve and we can go somewhere nice. I fancy a visit to Clevedon as I have never been there before.

Fred has been good by the sound of it, staying in the hospital today really to avoid the down pours.

Anyway, not much to report today which I suppose is good. I need to dry out a bit before I run after the other three, before the coach leaves.

Have a good party Claire - and happy birthday once again....

Day 109 (Tue 24 Oct)
Wed, 10/25/2006 - 08:09 — endc011
Yesterday evening I was with Fred in Bed 5, where we have been since Day 14, 21st July 2006 – my brother’s birthday. Fred and I decided not to head back to the flat.

Once settled I switch my radio off for a bit and listen to the heavy rain outside whilst lying in bed. The room is in darkness, but there is some light coming through the glazed panel in the door, through the curtain we draw at night. On the other side of the door is Ward 34 (Oncology), with a nurses station immediately outside to the left. This large desk is the hub of activity during both the day and night.

At night there will normally be two nurses on duty, plus a health care assistant. Sometimes there will be just the two nurses when it is quiet. Of the two, at least one must be trained to a certain standard in administering chemotherapy drugs (I think) for obvious reasons.

If there is not much happening, and with patients asleep, it must drag on and on for the staff. They cannot leave the ward on breaks so have to entertain themselves. There is always things for them to do, but if I am pottering about in the wee hours with Fred I do carefully peer out onto the ward to see what they are up to. If you need them they come instantly in any case.

I have also overcome my “shyness” of wearing pyjamas out on the ward and in the public corridors. I cannot be bothered to wear a dressing gown so my Homer Simpson sleep suit is worn with my moccasin slippers, or I might wear my Bugs Bunny long red t-shirt. Both are rather old and probably not really suitable for my age, but who cares? There can be some grim sights during the hours of darkness in a hospital. I did contemplate wearing my jeliboah which is like a large cotton ankle-length embroidered t-shirt which I bought in Egypt many years ago. Rachel recently reminded me that she wore it when Fred was born and it does not really look like a gentleman’s night attire. It is very comfortable though and the Egyptian men have worn them for centuries…

As I have previously mentioned, the pull down bed goes right down to floor level and Fred’s cot is at waist level a few feet away so is much higher than me when reclined. With the lights out I can see the rain overflowing from the guttering through the window and is illuminated by the security lights on the building opposite outside. For those who have not been in his room it is about 4 or 5 metres square, and is painted a bright yellow, with a yellow sheet vinyl floor to match. He has a high level window that opens, as well as a circular window that does not. The latter is so inaccessible it has, and never will be, cleaned, so the view of the street below is obscured.

Night itmes are quite cold in the room hence Fred now wearing a gro-bag and a hat at night now. I have a duvet on the bed which serves its purpose and the bed is actually quite comfortable. My old sleeping bag was too restrictive so is bundled in a corner. The bed can be stored all made up, so once it is done you only need to tidy it up in the morning to put it away again. The mattress is really soft so once I am tucked in, I position my radio by my ear so as to listen to Radio 4 and the World Service and am quite cosy.

During these quiet times it gives you an opportunity to lie back and reflect on things. Not just about poor little Fred and where we are at the moment (we have done hours and hours of that silently), but other silly little things. I end up wondering why certain things had been designed the way they were in his room. One of the most irritating is the three light switches which are near the hinge on the door. The door is nearly always open, but the switches are behind the door. Most of the doctors do not know where the switches are in any case. You have to move the bin and stretch in to try each switch in turn, to find the light you want. The lights are all at the edge of the room by the walls so there is not any general light anyway. The main light does not work I have recently noticed.

One of the light sources is the high level shelf, which has a fluorescent light fitting within it, shining up the wall. However, use the shelf by putting stuff on it and the light is obscured, and of course the items get hot too. The others are so dim they give little light but are good as nightlights.

The high level window does not have any curtains at all, so this in the past had been obscured with sheets of paper sellotaped by previous occupants. They have fallen off now though and the light from the adjacent offices stream in. If you want to open or close this window you have to climb up on to the mattress and wobble about until you grab hold of the handle to close it.

It is difficult to sleep as there is a lot of background noise occurring on the ward even with the door and curtain shut. The staff check on Fred regularly through the night so you tend to wake, or even wait, for there visit. Fred might need to have his nappy changed in the night, as we do not want him sitting in a damp nappy longer than he has to. If there has been a delay on him getting his meds or feeds, then he might need some attention at around 0100h ish. With these little things to worry about you tend to get your start sleeping from around 0400h onwards.
Last evening there was screaming and shouting from a child who was in obvious distress. I could hear things being knocked over whilst parents and staff tried to deal with the situation. By the sound of it I reckoned it was an NG tube being replaced. Later I asked a nurse about it and she confirmed that his tube had been pulled out, and the noise I heard was indeed it being replaced.

Fred will rise at 0500h fully refreshed and recharged and will want our company regardless of whether Rachel or I have slept properly. That turns into 0600h and then it will be his feed due, plus his 0700h meds which currently consist of five drugs – Magnesium Glycerosulphate, Potassium Citrate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Itraconazole, and Septrin, plus some Paracetamol and Codeine more recently. All these obviously have a liquid volume once combined and then there is a flush of sterile water to clear the NG tube of sticky residue. This can fill his tummy a bit before his feed. We try and defer his feed following this if possible. This all goes down his NG tube so he does not have to be awake, but it takes time to do it properly.

A few weeks ago there were several more drugs to give, all staggered through the day. As he has stabilised they have been discontinued. The ones Rachel and I now give are oral drugs, so could be popped in the mouth if necessary. However, Fred is frothy at the mouth sometimes and some of them taste positively nasty. He also has an oral chemotherapy – Mercaptopurine – which is too useful for him to waste by spitting it out.

All his other drugs are given by the nursing staff intravenously through his Hickman line – again he does not need to be awake for those.

However whilst he is asleep Fred can be heard snoring quite loudly, though it is a real pleasure to hear him waking up in the dark and snuffling about. I can hear him scratching his face and eyes. A yawn is regularly heard, followed more recently by a loud sigh. Then you can hear him opening and shutting his mouth, moving his tongue about. He is able to put his dummy in and out now, and he can be heard chomping frantically on it. It is easy to know when the dummy has dropped out of his mouth, as it bounces onto his mattress. There is a short silence before Fred breaks into a wail, which is our cue to wearily get up and put it back in his mouth. Then there is a clumsy but shuffling movement that makes him head toward the end of the bed, where he is then placed back at the head of the bed.

You can also clearly hear the rumbling of his stomach and then a bit lower down there will be a nasty bubbling sound that lasts several seconds. Nappy cahnge due. He of course thinks he is in an empty room, until I call out his name. He will then wobble his head around to where he thinks the sound has come from. His eyesight is good in the dark and I can make out a big grin when he spies me. By then it is time to get up, and this morning I likened it Ronnie Barker and “Open All Hours” – where he sets out his stall in the early hours. I get up and get ready with the door and curtain still shut but with the light on. Get Fred sorted and changed for the day, and then open the double doors to his room. Prop the doors with a “clinical waste” bin and plop Fred into his pram, and position him in the doorway looking down the corridor. The nursing staff then come up to greet Fred who returns them with a big grin. Those finishing their shift will wave goodbye to him, and those arriving will give him a cuddle and a tickle.

He will watch the patient name board being changed, in order to find out who his nurse is for this shift.
After I had come home I rang Rachel who was back with her mum June. Fred had had a good day and following the results of his blood tests, had been allowed back to the flat. They had been into town for lunch, and Fred had behaved impeccably.
They had spoken with Michelle the Consultant, and his platelet levels were still below the 100 mark, so he could not have this part of the chemo yet. Maybe tomorrow or after.
They went back to the flat and he slept well without problems and will return to the hospital tomorrow morning. I should be back there in the afternoon.