Tom Faranda's Folly

Does prayer aid medical recovery?

There have been a number of studies in the past 20 years which have attempted to scientifically examine whether intercessory prayer "works" - whether it can help people get better in a measurable way.

The most recent study is scheduled to appear in The American Heart Journal next week, but the results were released online yesterday.

Here is an excerpt from the NY Times coverage of the story this morning:

Prayers offered by strangers had no effect on the recovery of people who were undergoing heart surgery, a large and long-awaited study has found.

And patients who knew they were being prayed for had a higher rate of post-operative complications like abnormal heart rhythms, perhaps because of the expectations the prayers created, the researchers suggested.

Because it is the most scientifically rigorous investigation of whether prayer can heal illness, the study, begun almost a decade ago and involving more than 1,800 patients, has for years been the subject of speculation.

The question has been a contentious one among researchers. Proponents have argued that prayer is perhaps the most deeply human response to disease, and that it may relieve suffering by some mechanism that is not yet understood. Skeptics have contended that studying prayer is a waste of money and that it presupposes supernatural intervention, putting it by definition beyond the reach of science.

At least 10 studies of the effects of prayer have been carried out in the last six years, with mixed results. The new study was intended to overcome flaws in the earlier investigations.

The full NY Times article is here and it is a balanced report:Long-Awaited Medical Study Questions the Power of Prayer - New York Times It will only be available for free on the NYT website for the next week.

Here is the Washington Post coverage:Prayer Doesn't Aid Recovery, Study Finds  The Post coverage I found a little bit flippant. But at least reading it will always be free!

Both articles mention that past studies were "flawed" - or at least the ones that showed a link between intercessory prayer and healing were flawed! No mention of why they were flawed.

Here's one of the best known studies showing a link:Positive Therapeutic Effects of Intercessory Prayer in a Coronary Care Unit Population Page 1 This study was published in the Southern Medical Journal in 1988. The research was done as a "double blind randomized protocol".  In the early nineties this study was quoted by physicians - I first heard about it at that time, in a book on healing written by an M.D.

And here's a critique of the Southern Medical Journal study written by some obnoxious blogger - I found it yesterday - Skeptico: Prayer still useless -

My own opinion on this is the conventional Catholic one - prayer is efficacious, but don't ask me for a scientific analysis because no one (or at least I can't) can come up with one.

My new business venture

I am a minority partner with Ellen Mullin, who introduced me to this one -

Once upon a time there were four older ladies that lived in Italy...

They always sat outside and chatted about when they were younger...

One day they pooled their money together and bought a laptop computer...

They always wanted to see what Florida was all about and one day they clicked on St. Augustine, FL., and they read about the "Fountain of Youth" that was there...

they saved up all they could and sent for four bottles of the magic water... and as soon as it arrived they drank as much as they could...

The rest of this story will make you a believer because here they are today ...

NO! THIS IS REALLY, REALLY TRUE!!

And We have a supply of this water available at $125 a bottle

Hurry before inventory is all gone! Credit cards OK, no checks please.

Medal of Honor - Uncommon Valor

The Wall Street Journal had two op ed articles in the last two days on medal of honor winners.

The first one was about Paul Smith, killed in Iraq three years ago on April 4th., while defending his men. "Common Name, Uncommon Valor"  OpinionJournal - Federation.

The second was written by Peggy Noonan, as she recounts the exploits of several men from past struggles. "Patriots, Then and Now" OpinionJournal - Peggy Noonan  And she reflects on whether our Country still has what it takes to produce people like the ones she writes about.

A little self-portrait

I am told by people who follow these things that doing a self-portrait with a digital camera is all the rage.

So I just did my own portrait, by the simple expedient of holding the camera at arms length and snapping. I took six shots and, believe it or not, this was the best! Imagine how bad the other ones were. If you sighted this guy in your neighborhood you'd call the cops!

I believe you'll be able to see the moss growing on my head, as well as the return of my eyebrows. And some 9PM shadow. Don't know why my eyes are buggin' out like that ...

4th rituxin treatment and low cell counts

I had my fourth and last rituxin treatment today at the Sloan Kettering annex next to Phelp Hospital in Sleepy Hollow.

My blood cell counts are low. Total WBC's are 1.6 (down from 4.1 three week ago) and my RBC and hemaglobin counts also below normal. So I was given a shot of "Darby" (I can't spell the full name) to stimulate red blood cell production, and a shot of Neupogen for the white cells. I will also get Neupogen tomorrow and Friday.

No one seems to know why my counts are low. I will certainly have it on the top of my list to take up with Dr. Kewalramani when I see him in Manhattan next Tuesday.

Despite this, I do feel fine and with more pep then I had even a week or ten days ago. However, my lack of endurance (see posting from a couple of days ago) may be partly due to the below par red blood cell count.

Slightly old joke (slightly funny)

Two boys in Boston were playing baseball when one of them was attacked by a rabid Rotweiler. Thinking quickly, the other boy ripped a board off of a nearby fence, wedged it into the dog's collar and twisted it, breaking the dog's neck.

A newspaper reporter from the Boston Globe witnessed the incident and rushed over to interview the boy. The reporter began entering data into his laptop, beginning with the headline: "Brave Young Red Sox Fan Saves Friend From Jaws Of Vicious Animal"

. "But I'm not a Red Sox fan," the little hero interjected.

"Sorry" replied the reporter. "But since we're in Boston, Mass, I just assumed you were." Hitting the delete key, the reporter began: "John Kerry Fan Rescues Friend From Horrific Dog Attack".

"But I'm not a Kerry fan either," the boy responded.

The reporter said, "I assumed everybody in this state was either for the Red Sox or Kerry or Kennedy. What team or politician do you like?"

"I'm a Texas Rangers fan and I really like George W. Bush" the boy said.

Hitting the delete key, the reporter began again: "Arrogant Little Conservative Bastard Kills Beloved Family Pet".

Washington Post on Catholic vocations

The Post has an interesting - and balanced - piece on the Catholic Church and it's drive to increase vocations to the priesthood and the convent.Hearing God's Call In Search for Happiness

Here's the beginning of the article:

Picking at her black fingernail polish and fiddling with her shirt and shoulder-length blond hair, 16-year-old Chelsea Sledgeski seems every bit the typical teen.

Like her friends on the basketball team or her classmates hanging around Anne Arundel County's new malls and subdivisions, she has pressures: divorced parents, an injury that landed her on the team bench and an argument she just had with her father about her report card.

In the past few months, though, she has found a salve. It sets her apart from her family, her neighbors, even her friends at Our Lady of the Fields Catholic Church, where she stood beaming at a packed youth Mass one recent Sunday night.

Sledgeski is considering becoming a nun.

When she talks about what would attract a suburban girl with a sparkly shirt and a safari-themed room to a life of chastity and poverty, her first words aren't about devoting herself to the needy or saving souls from eternal damnation. Her inspiration sounds pretty pragmatic: Nuns and priests seem really happy compared with adults traveling other life routes.

The environment, global warming, and the economy.

This morning there were two articles regarding the environment on the Wall Street Journal op ed page, both available on their free opinionjournal site.

Pete Du Pont wrote on "How to combat 'Global Warming' without Destroying the economy" OpinionJournal - Outside the Box .

And Al Gore (perhaps you've heard of him?) co-authors "For People and Planet" OpinionJournal - Featured Article .

On a personal note, it is a relief to know that my SUV is not causing the warming trend that is currently going on - on Mars.

Top Ten Things to Say if You Are Caught Sleeping at Your Desk

This is off the Luskin website:

TOP TEN THINGS TO SAY IF YOU ARE CAUGHT SLEEPING AT YOUR DESK   

10. "They told me at the blood bank this might happen."

9. "This is just a 15 minute power nap they raved about in the time management course you sent me to."

8. "Whew! Guess i left the top off the white out. You probably got here just in time."

7. "I wasn't sleeping! I was meditating on the mission statement and envisioning a new business strategy."

6. "I was testing my keyboard for drool resistance."

5. "I was doing a highly specific yoga exercise to relieve work-related stress. Are you discriminatory towards people who practice yoga?"

4. "Darn! Why did you interrupt me? I had almost figured out how to handle that big accounting problem."

3. "Did you ever notice sound coming out of these keyboards when you put your ear down real close?"

2. "Who put decaf in the wrong pot?!?"

Number one best thing to say if you get caught sleeping at your desk....raise your head slowly and say, "In Jesus name, amen."

8 week post-hospital update

Today is the eight week anniversary of my discharge from MSK. It's also the end of what was initially set as my "limited activites" period.

I celebrated with pizza (two slices of sausage, from Capricchio's), while the four of us watched the DVD "The Brothers Grimm" (the sort of movie that is entertaining enough on DVD, but where you also say "I'm glad I didn't blow any money seeing this in a theatre").

This was my first pizza in almost three months. Restaurant food has been off-limits for the past eight weeks, including bringing in pizza.

I am going to ease slowly off the limited activites schedule, especially in light of the chest infection I had only a couple of weeks ago, and also the fact that my blood cell levels are still not back to normal. I will continue to avoid crowds, probably right up until we fly out to Disney on Easter. I'll also be careful with my diet - no cold cuts, etc. I am not going to go back to the gym for another couple of weeks, although I am going for walks and using the dumbbells in the basement.

While my weight is fine - about 150 - I am really out of shape. Tim decided he wanted to "shoot some hoops" today, so we went to the nearby park. After about twenty minutes of shooting baskets, Tim decided he wanted to "play a game" so we did some one-on-one. And within three or four minutes it was evident to me that anything I do faster than a walk immediately results in me getting puffed. And I mean p-u-f-f-e-d. And I was only playing against a third grader! I don't think I've ever been in this poor a shape, from a cardiovascular perspective. So the first four to six weeks in the gym will be, ahhh, very interesting.

Latest read - "The Elusive Quest for Growth"

This book asks and attempts to answer the following question: How do you raise the standard of living of the vast numbers of people living in terrible poverty in the undeveloped (the third) world?

The sub-title of this book is “Economists’ Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics”. It was written by William Easterly, who was an economist at the World Bank for 17 years and published in 2001.

In the preface to the paperback edition Easterly wrote the following: “…many readers have asked if my statement in the original prologue that ‘my employer … the World Bank… encourages gadflies like me to exercise intellectual freedom’ was really accurate. Well almost. It should be slightly modified to ‘the World Bank encourages gadflies like me to find another job.’”

Easterly is now a professor at NYU and a non-resident fellow at a “think tank”, The Center for Global Development.

The book is divided into 14 chapters, with a brief “Intermezzo” between each one. The chapters deal with the nuts and bolts of economic development – what’s not worked in the past, what has worked, and what we should be doing in the future. The Intermezzos are real stories of poor people in a variety of countries, that Easterly either met or his associates had met. What their problems are: no roads, no health care, miserable food, no sanitation, children killed in civil wars, stuff like that. “The Elusive Quest…” is less than 300 pages long (not counting the footnotes and bibliography) and I read it in a week, two chapters a day.

It is written in an accessible and breezy style and can be read with profit by someone with no background in economics. There is some lingo and economic concepts, but you can gloss over them and still get the gist of Easterly’s points. 

Easterly starts with the basic economist’s premise: People respond to incentives. From this perspective Easterly in the first part of the book examines all the failed approaches to Third World economic aid and development since World War 2.   These include foreign aid for development, investing in machines, investing in education, limiting population growth (that chapter is called “cash for condoms”), adjustment lending (conditions of reform are put on the loans), and debt forgiveness (think Bono, the Dalai Lama, a few economists, and the Pope – an unlikely grouping).

To give one example from the above – adjustment lending. The bankers (IMF, World Bank, private lender, etc) put strings on the loans. “You must reform your banking system” or “you must make it easier for small businesses to start up”. Inevitably the reforms are not made, and equally inevitably the money is doled out. After all, the money is allocated, we need to help the poor – so the money is given. And once that precedent is set, well the worst offending countries know they are in the clear and needn’t worry about actually making any of the adjustments mandated in the future.

The book is far from all negative. For example there is a fascinating section (starts on Page 146) of how Bengladesh developed a garment industry – going from zero exports in 1979, to two billion dollars in exports per year within twenty years. (Remember, people respond to incentives.) But Easterly has no illusions that a simple free market system alone works – government institutions and public services are essential in his view. The rub of course, is effective institutions’ providing public services, and Easterly has a large section on the endemic government corruption in developing countries.

Easterly makes many interesting points. For instance, there is no correlation between income tax rates and development. So it seems that simply lowering income tax rates (supply side stuff) is irrelevant in the developing world. On the other hand, most income tax is never collected anyway, (the collection rate in Peru is 35% of what should be taken in, given the tax rate) which makes the income tax rate pretty moot.

Another point: there is a correlation between government bureaucracy and corruption (bureaucracy, not efficient government-provided public services) and economic growth. And of course it’s a big negative correlation. Again, quality institutions are essential in Easterly’s view. He has many stories about inefficient and corrupt institutions, which would be humorous if they weren’t so pathetic. Nevertheless you have to laugh at his run-ins with Mexican police and Jamaican black market currency operators (Easterly has a fair number of anecdotes and information about Jamaica, that I connected with. I lived there for two years in the late 70’s.)

In the original preface to the book, Easterly says, “This is a sad story but it can be a hopeful one. We now have statistical evidence to back up theories of how the panaceas failed and how incentive-based policies can work.” While his book is a bit more about how the panaceas failed than about what works, it is a superb, fascinating and frequently disturbing read.

"The Elusive Quest for Growth" seems to have been well-received by people interested in development. There are fifty reviews on the amazon.com website, which is a huge number for a book of this type. Amazon.com: Reviews for The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists' Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics: Books: William...

More on John Lillis

Here is the Journal News front page article on my neighbor down the street, who I wrote about in the previous post. It's a good article with extensive quotes by the Church pastor, Fr. Mike Keane. Two communities reeling in aftermath of fatal crash.

Unfortunately they refer to John as the "Grand Wizard" of the Knights of Columbus (sounds like the KKK!) when the real title is Grand Knight.They did correct that in a subsequent story.

John's wake is Sunday, and the funeral Monday.

A bad day in Croton-on-Hudson

In fact it was a really bad day - an awful day.

This morning (Wednesday) our friend and my assistant Judy came over to the house at 8:30 with the terrible news that a neighbor of mine, who lived at the end of the street, had been killed the previous evening in a car crash.

John Lillis was well-known in our Church - he was one of these absolutely vital people who did all the work to make sure things got done. He was also the Grand Knight of the local Knights of Columbus.

John was coming home from work yesterday evening near Cold Spring, when a woman driving a chevrolet tahoe crossed the double yellow line and collided head on with him. Evidently John was killed instantly and the woman severely injured.

John has three children age about 18 to 23. I don't think he was even 50. And he lost his wife Roseanne to illness about four years ago.

So it's one of those things you can't even try to figure out. Brigid had seen John Tuesday morning and given him a wave.

What's more to say? A terrible loss for John's family as well as for our community. It's heartbreaking. 

Third Rituxin treatment

Today was the third of the first four Rituxin treatments I am getting post- chemotherapy. The next and last series will be in four months.

Before the treatment I was seen by my original oncologist, Dr. Wasserheit. I hadn't seen her in several months, and she was quite plesed to see that I'd weathered all my chemotherapy pretty well. She is hopeful that I will not have a recurrence, although I pointed out to her that Dr. Zelenetz, the lymphoma guru, does not have that level of optimism.

In any event, there is no sign of the bacterial or yeast infections. The only issue is that my blood counts - WBC's and hemaglobin - are still on the low side.

But I feel good. For the first time since March 4th, I went into the basement and worked with the dumbbells. I'd lost all that time with the chest and yeast infections! It actually went a little better then I expected. 

Interview with Archbishop soon-to-be-Cardinal O'Malley of Boston

Here's a Boston Globe interview published this past weekend with Archbishop Sean O'Malley, who was put into the Boston mess after the resignation of Cardinal Law. O'Malley Transcript - The Boston Globe.

Archbishop O'Malley is a Capuchin Franciscan, who is well thought of by people who know him.

The Boston Globe is owned by the NY Times, which means the article will probably be available for free only for a week. If you can't access it, email me and I will send you a copy I've archived in my email.

Democratic Party strategery

The Washington Times a few days ago had an interesting article on Democratic Party planning for the 2006 political races. Political offensive targets Bush - Nation/Politics - insider.washingtontimes.com

The Drudge Report then posted the Party memo that the Washington Times article is based on, but the link no longer functions!

Third anniversary of Iraq

Depending on your position/perspective, tomorrow is the third anniversary of the Iraqi incursion - or - liberation - or - invasion. Here's what some Iraqis think: Iraqis see long road to recovery - World - insider.washingtontimes.com .  Here's what the NY Times editorial page has to say: The Stuff That Happened - New York Times . If the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal comment, I will post the links.

In the meantime, anti-war protests were pretty much of a bust: Demonstrations Mark Third Anniversary of Iraq Invasion - New York Times and also check here:Salt Lake Tribune - Salt Lake Tribune Home Page .

"Wired" hospital rooms

Some of my journal commentary recently made it into a medical newsletter. You can see it here, under "Wired" Hospital Rooms. Innovation: It's Not Just a Paper Saver - by Susan Konig - The Heartland Institute

It got in because my neighbor and friend Sue Konig (author of "Why Animals Live so Close to the Road and Other Lies I Tell My Children", and soon coming out with a new book!) is managing editor of the newsletter, and reads this journal between editing, writing, and taking care of four kids + hubbie Dave.

7 weeks post-hospital update

I got out seven weeks ago. I should have only another week plus a few days of limited activites and diet restrictions, but I will probably ease very gradually back to normal activites and diet, considering my recent bacterial chest infection and yeast infection.

I believe both infections are now past tense. Temperature is normal, no chills, and most importantly, I feel fine. In fact I am eating like a pig after a week with no appetite - everything from homemade potato leak soup to Rose's chocolates (that's an English chocolatier).

I will be on the Nustatin anti-yeast medication for another seven days. Also, my fitness is awful. I went for 22 minute walks the last two days. When I finally get back to the gym, it's going to be a chore getting my cardio back to a decent level. Tomorrow (Sunday) I'll use the dumbbells in the basement for the first time since March 4th, and I'm sure the results won't be pretty.   

But I suppose, so what if it takes some time? It's not like I'm in training for a 10K race or to play rugby again.

Last note - hair is definitely coming back. Especially noticeable on my eyebrows, and on my head you can now just make out my hairline pattern and hair color. Don't think it will show up in a picture, but I may post one tomorrow anyway.

News on U.S. action regarding Darfur

I posted a while ago about the horrible genocidal war going on in Darfur, Sudan. It is mentioned in the NRO article I linked to in the previous post.

My friend John Lally, who has been very involved in Save Darfur efforts, sent me an email which I reproduce below. Re: my Republican Congressional representative Sue Kelly: what a jerk. I never voted for her, I never will vote for her... a further reminder to me of the merits of my not belonging to a political party.

If you're in Sue's district, why not give her a call to express your displeasure.

In case you haven't heard, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the amendment providing $50 million to immediately bolster the peacekeeping mission to stop genocide in Darfur, Sudan. The amendment passed by a narrow 213-208 vote after a furious call-in campaign organized by the Save Darfur Coalition. A key member of the House called to express his gratitude for people of faith, saying, "the tremendous grassroots advocacy (by people of faith) helped make possible this victory for the people of Darfur."

Sadly, Sue Kelly voted against the amendment. I suggest calling (202-225-5441) or emailing(http://suekelly.hous.gov/) her to let her know our dissatisfaction with that vote.

State Department Human Rights report and Congressional Review

Here is an interesting article from National Review Online Nina Shea on Human Rights on National Review Online

Here's a quote: "This annual exercise — the State Department’s issuance of the "Country Reports," and the congressional hearings that review them — is uniquely American. No other nation produces anything comparable."

Ahhh, you say! Isn't this the pot calling the kettle black? What about our human rights abuses? Good point. Here's an article from yesterday's Washington Post Military Lawyers Say Tactics Broke Rules in which all sorts of military lawyers are critical of over the top Guantanamo interrogation techniques.

Here's a quote: "the lawyers wrote that forcing a detainee to wear a woman's bra and thong underwear on his head, insulting a detainee's mother and sister, calling a detainee a homosexual and implying that others know he is a homosexual, forcing a detainee to perform dog tricks, and forcing a detainee to stand naked in the presence of female soldiers would not be consistent with the Army's policy."

Now this is degrading, stupid, inhumane, and shouldn't be tolerated. I'm glad it was dug up by internal investigations. The perpetrators should be punished. But it's not torture. The Falun Gong religious sect in China would find this preferable to psychotropic drugs and electroshock. 

Taking Nystatin and feeling better

My meeting with Dr. Casper this morning before my rituxin treatment resulted in my getting a prescription for Nystatin. Dr. Casper felt I had a yeast infection in my mouth/throat. I had that type of problem after the first RCHOP treatment months ago. I could have gotten it this time from taking the Tequin antibiotic - it destroyed the natural flora in my mouth and the thrush yeast moved in. I think that's probable.

Nystatin is a medication you briefly gargle with and then swallow (or "swish and swallow" as they medical people call it). It's helped already. The silly, phlegmy cough I had is gone, my temperature is normal and I feel pretty normal (as in prowling around the kitchen looking for something to munch on, which I haven't felt like doing in several days).

Sadly, I will be missing out on any St. Paddy's day festivities. However, I will be wearing my now almost-30-years-old-green-tie-with-the-derby-with-the-arrow-through-it! EVERY SCORE COUNTS. To those who know the story, no explanation is necessary, to those who don't, well I'll try to explain tomorrow.

Infection and temperature update

Today is day six of my seven day antibiotics course. And it seems to be going well.

However yesterday afternoon my temperature spiked up to 101.5 and I got some noticeable chills. By 11PM my temperature was on the way down and overnight and this morning, it was normal. What to do? This morning I decided decided not to call Sloan, but instead see how the day goes. It went well, and I got a call from Sloan reminding me that I have to see Dr. Casper before I get my rituxin treatment tomorrow. And that includes bloodwork. So I figured, I will mention it to him tomorrow.

Then late in the afternoon today, temp went back up to 101, and I got more chills. Only lasted for about ninety minutes. And now, 9:30pm and I feel pretty good. So we'll see tomorrow, what the next move might be - hopefully no move.

Finished an excellent book a couple of days ago, but haven't had time to post on it. Will do in the next couple of days.

Senator Feingold and his censure plan for Prez. Bush

doesn't seem to be too popular with his Democratic Senate colleagues. This posting on the althouse weblog is amusing. 

Althouse: "We need a different strategy, one that shows we stand for something."

Interesting piece on John Paul II and his health

It seems like JP 2 didn't have too much time for Dr.'s! International News Article | Reuters.com

"ROME (Reuters) - Pope John Paul II often played down his ailments and was reluctant to receive medical treatment, according to a book by some of his closest aides, including his personal physician."

Health care costs and health care rationing

Here's an interesting article - a review of two reviewers, reviewing three books on health care costs!

The author of this article, Arnold Kling, is an economist who graduated from MIT   TCS Daily - Is Socialized Medicine the Answer?

Brigid is from one of the original lands of socialized medicine - Great Britain. today, in Britain (according to a recent Wall Street Journal article) only 40% of patients with cancer are treated by an oncologist.

Life in the heavy set lane

There was a very interesting article in the Washington Post this morning, about a political operative (very successful guy) who has been large-sized all his life. He's written a book entitled "Living Large", all about his coming to terms with being a heavy guy.  The Measure of a Man

6 weeks + one day post-hospital health update

And of course two days after my quick visit to Sloan Kettering’s Urgent Care Center on Friday.Tom Faranda's Folly: Elevated temperature earns me a trip to Sloan Kettering

I am sure the antibiotic I was given on Friday is having a good effect on my chest infection. Cough is almost totally gone.

However – I think I have a mild cold. Runny nose, sneezing, and I still have a slight temperature. So I took it real slow today, drank lots of fluid and took Tylenol. I am hopeful it won’t turn into a stinky, bad cold.

My period of limited activities is supposed to end in two weeks. However with the chest infection setback I am going to extend it. I think I’ll avoid crowds and unnecessary contacts with people until April 5^th, when I will be attending a fundraiser.

Yesterday evening we had dinner with the Riner’s (Mike and Karen) and the Novotny’s (Paul and Doreen), with Doreen doing the cooking at her home. (I am allowed to have home cooking with small groups!) Great nosh. Doreen is a great cook with many styles, going Italian last night.

Important announcement: “Tom Faranda, you’ve just undergone five months of chemotherapy and additional follow-up treatment. Now what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to Disney World!”

Yup. I haven’t been to Disney World in 20 years, my kids have never been there, and at 12 & 9 they are the right ages. So we are going Easter Sunday night, through to the following Saturday. Another good reason to avoid unnecessary contacts for the next several weeks. I don’t want to go to Orlando on antibiotics, or with a cold.

I see Dr. Kewalramani, on March 28^th.  . Assuming all is well, I think I’ll probably be transferred back to Dr. Zelenetz at that point.   

Adoption and Down's Syndrome

Many people would find it hard to believe, but there are waiting lists of families looking to adopt children with Down's Syndrome. A few years ago I corresponded with a woman who had arranged for about 2,000 adoptions.

Here's a good article.CNN.com - Children with Down syndrome sought for adoption - Feb 13, 2006

UPDATE Sept. 7, 2006 - The CNN link has gone "bad". For information on adopting children with Down's Syndrome, go here:

DOWN SYNDROME ADOPTION AGENCIES

or here:

Down syndrome

Interview with Tom Wolfe

The Wall Street Journal had an excellent interview/article on Tom Wolfe yesterday. They posted it on their opinionjournal.com site, so it is available for free. OpinionJournal - Featured Article

I've only read two of Wolfe's books - The Right Stuff and Bonfire of the Vanities. I don't read many novels, but Bonfire is my all-time favorite. Did Wolfe ever capture NY in the 80's (Remember "lemon tarts" and "social x-rays"?). Even my father read and liked it.

But, it sounds like Wolfe ain't too popular in New York social circles. Read the Journal piece, it's fascinating.

Just found out who the Patron Saint of the internet is!

And of computers, students, computer technicians...

What, this is not a pressing issue for you?

With thanks to the Rev. Bonnie Shullenberger for letting me know (via email!).

Click here: Patron Saints Index: Saint Isidore of Seville

Elevated temperature earns me a trip to Sloan Kettering

As I mentioned in my last post - Thursday - I'd been having a slightly elevated temperature, and also some chills. And I just didn't feel right - I felt run down - not like chemo fatiique - more like I had a viral infection or something like that. I hadn't used the dumbbells all week.

Well last night - Friday - my temp went over the 100.5 level at which I'm supposed to call the Doc. It only went to 100.7, but that was good enough for me. So this morning I called Dr. Kewalramani's office and spoke to "Cat", one of his nurses. she said I really needed to get this looked at, by going to the Urgent Care Center at MSK in Manhattan. This is their version of the emergency room. She also said I could be seen at the satellite office in Sleepy Hollow, and left it up to me. After mullling it over a bit I decided to go into the city since I couldn't be sure how fast they'd get the chest x-ray info from Phellps over to the Sloan Kettering people.

So I drove in myself and got looked at. First time I've ever gone to MSK in the city by myself - with the boys getting off the bus at 2:30 it wouldn't have worked for Brigid to come along. I left the house at 10:30 and was in Urgent Care at just about 11:40.

So after blood work, weeing in a cup, and having a chest x-ray, here were the results:

I have something going on in my chest, and elevated WBC's in my urine. The urgent care physician couldn't hear any problem in my chest, and said I don't have pneumonia, but she said, "something is brewing." They weren't sure about the white blood cells in the urine - could be a urinary tract infection, but there are no other symptoms.

So I am on Tequin, a broad spectrum antibiotic that, in the words of my friend (Dr.) Paul Novotny "kills everything." I'll be taking it for a week. I took today's dose around 2:30, it's now 9:30 and I feel better already.

I didn't get home until 4:45, so another planned working day down the rathole, but I am very glad I went in to Sloan. Funnily enough, my sore throat went away yesterday on it's own, but I knew that something else wasn't right. 

As my mother said when I headed to Sloan for the high dose chemo and stem cell transplant "do whatever they tell you." Always listen to your mother.

By the way, when I had the chest x-ray, I asked the technician how long it would be before the x-ray was read. He said "about one minute." I guess the x-ray is sent (on a fiber optic line?) to the radiologist reading room and is immediately seen. Pretty amazing.

Dr. visit and rituxin today

Saw Dr. Casper this morning prior to getting the rituxin. I'd never met him - he is covering for Dr. Mills. He is evidently the head physician for all the MSK satellite offices and usually practices out of NJ.

Anyway the blood results were "respectable". My hemoglobin was down a little, and I think some of my WBC readings were, but he said the key ones were "excellent." Also did a throat culture.

The rituxin IV, which takes a little less than three hours went fine, but I was awfully tired when I got home, and had some chills. I am pretty sure I have some low grade infection (throat?). My temperature later in the day was a little elevated but never over 99.8.

Perhaps a combination of rituxin and a small infection? I don't know. And right now (9:15PM) I feel OK.

A foreign policy double standard? Welcome to reality

The NY Times ran an incredibly stupid editorial a couple of days ago, attacking Bush (there's a shock!) for his trip to India and Pakistan.

(A digression: It's amazing how dumb the NY Times editorial pages have gotten as I've gotten older. I don't mind at all their taking positions not consonant with my thinking; but their positions are so poorly reasoned and stated... I will now date myself by saying, I liked Tom Wicker, even when I disagreed with him, because at least his postions were thought out and rationally presented.)

Here's a sensible op ed piece by Richard Cohen (no shill for Bush either) in the Washington Post on the topic at issue. Judicious Double Standards

Ambien (the sleeping pill) and it's side effects

Ambien is the most prescribed sleep medication in the country. I'd never heard of it until my chemotherapy. I used it several times (in the lower 5 mg. dose, not the full 10mg.) and it worked very well. Here's an almost amusing article inthe NYT on some potential problems and side effects!

Some Sleeping Pill Users Range Far Beyond Bed - New York Times 

As always with NY Times articles, they are only available for free for seven days. Anyone coming upon this posting after that, if you are interested in the article email me and I will send you a copy I've archived in my email.

Short health update

Tomorrow I start my once a week treatment (for four weeks) of rituxin. It takes about 3 hours by IV and I'll be getting it at the MSK branch in Sleepy Hollow. I will see one of the physicians there first, and ask him about my sore throat, which is lessened, but still there.

I am still not 100% - this afternoon I came home for lunch - thought I'd have some soup and then go for a 25 minute walk before returning to my office. I had some soup, laid down for "a minute" and woke up three hours later.

Still not much sign of hair. More fuzz on the upper and lower lips, and with a vast amount of imagination, I can see some fuzz on my dome.

Catholic journal on environmentalism, gas crisis, gas tax

One of my environmentally-minded friends - a generally bright, very well-intentioned fellow - suggested I post an editorial from Commonweal (a "progressive" Catholic periodical) entitled "Addicted to Oil".

Even though I disagree with the gist and tone of it, why not?

And the gist is that the Bush proposals for energy devleopment were "timid, unrealistic alternatives for ending a dependency ..." and the only thing that will succeed in ending "America's ever-expanding appetite for fossil fuels" is, of course, a higher tax on gasoline. No worries about how that will effect the economy.

Here's the link to the full editorial, pro and con comments welcome: Commonweal : Addicted to Oil

Latest Read – “Sadhana” by Anthony de Mello, SJ

This is actually a re-read of Sadhana, subtitled A Way to God, Christian Exercises in Eastern Form.

Anthony de Mello was a Jesuit spiritual director and writer, prior to his sudden and untimely death in 1987. (For a touching online biography of de Mello by his brother, go here -  Tony deMello, a biography ).

I first read Sadhana probably 12 or 14 years ago. This time, I brought it with me into the hospital as a back-up read, but didn’t start it until I came home. The book is in three sections and divided into 47 “exercises” or short chapters, and should be read over a period of time – I took almost five weeks, reading one or two exercises a day.

The three sections are entitled Awareness, mostly having to do with various thought, concentration, and breathing exercises. I used exercise five for four weeks (you’ll have to get the book to find out what exercise five is!)

The second section is Fantasy but perhaps would be better labeled Imagination, and is somewhat Ignatian. Imagine yourself in a Gospel story, imagine you are dying and say good-bye to your body, the joyful (and sorrowful) mysteries of your life – stuff like that.

The last section is Devotions, with lessons like The “Benedictine” method, the Jesus Prayer, the Prayer of Intercession.

The book is very good and once read can serve as a sort of reference – go back and re-use the things you found valuable. Of course the trick is to actually do the exercises over a period of time. Time is important – it takes time for the value of these approaches to affect you. Or as some would say, to "sink in".

I guarantee that when you finish the book you will NOT be able to levitate, have visions, etc, but you probably will be a calmer and saner person.  Not bad.

Five weeks out of the hospital and a look at my future outlook

Today is the five week anniversary of my discharge after the high dose chemo and stem cell transplant. And here’s what’s going on.

The fatigue factor continues to gradually lesson, but is still there. My taste buds are now making a nice recovery and are almost back to normal. I have a slightly sore throat, and yesterday I had some chills, so I may have a small infection. No abnormal temperature, which would have triggered a call to the Docs. And after taking some advil I felt OK. Since I am seeing one of the Memorial oncologists on Wednesday, I will take the throat thing up with him if it’s still around.

On Wednesday I start the rituxin treatment – once a week for four weeks. That’s given by IV and takes about three hours. It will be at the Phelps/Sleepy Hollow MSK branch, so it’s pretty easy from a logistics standpoint. The rituxin therapy will be repeated in four months. And then that’s it except for follow-up “check-ups.”

What’s the future outlook?

An excellent question. The answer is: guarded and murky.

Today, the lymphoma is in complete remission. No sign of it. However, almost certainly all the CA cells have not been eradicated (that’s the reason for the rituxin follow-up. To kill more cells). While a couple of Docs have hinted that the high dose chemotherapy might be the end of my problems, the main lymphoma guru treating me, Dr. Zelenetz, has emphatically stated that mantle cell lymphoma cannot be eradicated. 

Before I began chemotherapy Dr. Z went over the range of outcomes. He actually graphed it out by hand on a piece of paper, and I did a credible job of using the word program to show his drawing, but unfortunately typepad seems to not be enabled for drawings, and I was unable to cut and paste the graph into this posting. So you’ll just have to follow this:

Without the high dose chemotherapy: essentially everyone goes into remission, but the recurrence rate is 100% in four to six years. And for many people, much more quickly.

With the high dose chemotherapy (what I had – requires the stem cell transplant): the recurrence rate is an even (graphic) slope of 10% a year, so by end of year ten no one is in remission and everyone has recurred. In other words, in two years, 20% recurrence among patients, in five years 50% recurrence, and everyone at the end of ten years.

When Dr. Zelenetz went over this, I said to him “You mean I could go though all this chemo and the lymphoma could come back in a year?” And he said “Yes.”

So that was pretty sobering.

Some additional points.

Like all oncologists, Dr. Zelenetz is very cautious in establishing expectations. I have found that oncologists tend to be a pessimistic bunch (who can blame them?). They want to give you hope, but not heightened expectations. And they don’t make written-in-stone long range predictions.

And Dr. Z is certainly cut from that cloth. In fact I told him, “Dr. Zelenetz, it’s good to be a moderate pessimist because then all your surprises are nice ones.” And he didn’t disagree.

For example, Dr. Z. said I’d need three sessions of the RICE chemotherapy protocol, and I only needed two. He didn’t tell me up front, that one-third to one-half of people need only two (which is what he told us when it was determined I’d only need two), he just said there would be three RICE sessions. So only two was a nice surprise. He was emphatic that the high dose chemotherapy would require a 30 day hospitalization, and even after the transplant physician said “about three weeks”, Zelenetz said “four weeks”. I got out in 20 days, so another nice surprise.

And I do have the indolent version of MSL, which may mean the surviving cells will be slower to rally and build up to detectable levels. No one has actually said that, it’s simply something I have construed. I could be completely wrong.

So I think I am being reasonable and rational when I tell people that we are gunning for five to ten years of symptom free remission. That’s the goal. It’s not guaranteed. Will I be disappointed if the lymphoma is back before that time frame? Disappointed is an understatement. Will I be shocked or surprised? No.

Mantle cell has only been a separately classified lymphoma since the early or mid 90’s. So beside the fact that they don’t have that much long range data, the hope (my hope!) is that if I do get a good time frame of remission, there will be some new or improved therapy for a second go-around. Especially a therapy that does eradicate the cells.   

Anyway that’s my future tentative outlook. As I get more information, I will modify my view.

   

At the genocide museum in Kurdistan

I picked up on this through a link on the Althouse weblog. It's tough.

The author is a free lance writer out of Portland, Oregon.

Michael J. Totten: “The Head of the Snake”

When you enter the museum you will walk through a long and winding hallway. The walls are covered with mirror shards. Each represents one of the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Kurds murdered in the genocidal Anfal campaign. A river of twinkling lights lines the ceiling. Each represents one of the five thousand villages destroyed by Saddam Hussein....

The hardest thing to see was the cell used to hold children before they were murdered. My translator Alan read some of the messages carved into the wall.

“I was ten years old. But they changed my age to 18 for execution.”

“Dear Mom and Dad. I am going to be executed by the Baath. I will not see you again.”

So you're mad at your boss.. or the wife... here's the answer

Of course you've got to be REALLY mad, because this is the big one.  YUP, you can learn to build your own WMD! Here are the details from the Washington Post

"How to Build a Nuclear Bomb"

Just take the one year course at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Serivce and you're all set to obliterate the job, the neighborhood, etc.

Hair?

Stay tuned, but I think I've detected the beginnings of peach fuzz on my lower and upper lips.

You have to start somewhere.