12/31

last day of 2008. been a rough year. here's hoping 2009 is much better! happy new year everyone!

12/30

all is well! all is well!

happy new year

11/29

talked with the oncologist today. all is going as planned. it still looks like jan. 15 for the beginning of the transplant treatment. my blood counts all look great. hard to believe, i'm counting the days to readmission. happy new year.

12/28

feeling good, still really glad to be free. one of my parole stipulations is self infusions. i get to give myself i.v.'s at home. here's me and my man purse. GO BEARS!

12/27

I'M STILL AT HOME! hard to believe, 2 nights in a row! i'm celebrating small things. one day at a time. feeling better. love you all.

thanks jo

12/26

it sure was nice to sleep in my own bed last night. but, back to the u of c grind. got a picc line put in. i'm feeling good. luv ya

12/25

merry christmas everyone! i'm home! after enough after enough begging to let me spend christmas with my family, i'm free. of course, back again tomorrow for labs. but i hope to be home through my transplant. have a merry christmas everyone!

12/24

i "might" be home for christmas?



a glimmer of hope! (isn't that what christmas eve is?) the possibility of spending christmas day at home is greatly improving. they've placed a couple caveats on me, the biggest being no fever or infection. but if i have shown neither by tomorrow morning, i should be out of here by 10 am. i would have to come back friday for an outpatient procedure and return to the the 3 day a week routine as before, but i'll take what i can get. keep your fingers crossed. here's wishing a very merry christmas to you and your families!

Post from Jani

Christmas will be different this year, but we will get through it--different location, same people. That's what matters.  Remember Kurt, it's like being in the caribbean (fyi friends...they move very slow at U of C--it's like caribbean island service).  Our Christmas picnic dinner will be filets, cheesy smashed potatoes, asparagus and cookies from Madeline and Deb Walton.  Our source of entertain, The Muppet's Christmas Carol.  Prayers that you get better.  John Dobrez will be turning 50 soon, so you need to get home so you can hang with him! xxoo

12/23

found out this morning that i get to celebrate christmas at the university of chicago's mitchell hospital. the bacteria is still present in my body and they won't send me home until completely gone. i'm obviously very disappointed. i guess "i won't be home for christmas" after all. it sounds like maybe friday, but they've led me on all week. we'll see. my love to everyone and wishes for a joyous and healthy holiday.

12/22

a couple of procedures today. the big one is to replace my port ( a direct line into an artery). it turns out that is what infected me. so if all goes well i should be home for the holidays. merry christmas.

12/21

nothing happening today. very quiet around here on sunday. a couple of things tomorrow and hopefully home by wednesday morning.

12/20

another weekend in paradise. it turns out i have some kind of infection. they are not sure what. but they need to continue to monitor me, and overload me me with anti-biotics, anti-virals, anti-fungals. i feel very flu like. fever, headaches, muscle ache, no appetite, nausea, etc. i hope they figure it out before wednesday. early indications are for a very cold bear game monday night. those of you who are going, keep warm.

12/19

back in the hospital tonight, probably tomorrow night too. my white blood cell count is very low, and i've had a mild fever. they want to monitor me to make sure it is nothing serious. getting used to this now. you know you've spent way to much time here when everyone knows your name. the doctors are actually arguing over who gets my case. my sister kristin is in from boulder to celebrate christmas with our family this week. it's awesome to see her, and spend time with her. i'm sure the hospital is not what she had in mind when she left denver. she's spending tonight with me at the hospital, and tomorrow afternoon/evening/night with jani and the children. thanks to my great neighbors who really ease our burdens around the house(snowblowing this morning) love you all. keep the prayers coming.



May your strength give us strength
May your faith give us faith
May your hope give us hope
May your love give us love



sorry john

12/18

feeling good. back for platelets today. back again tomorrow. my sister is coming in for the weekend. really looking forward to see her. merry christmas all.

12/17

feeling good. love you all. merry christmas.

12/16

not much to add. i have to go to u of c 4 days again this week. i haven't driven the dan ryan so much since i lived in flossmoor. i guess my blood counts are at their lowest spots, so they need to check them almost everyday. hopefully by next week they'll have recovered enough so i won't have to go so often. my oncologist said it looks like mid january for my transplant. but the donor has been back to have their type crossed and checked, so it sounds like they are ready to go. very good news. hope you have your christmas shopping done, only 9 days left. merry christmas all!

12/13

twins?

12/12

spent another 6 hrs. at u of c today. received plat lets again. so i've been there 4 day this week, including 1 overnight. i guess that's the compromise. i get to sleep at home (most nights) but spend my days there. we have obviously gotten a huge number of meals and numerous baked goods,(which we are very grateful for. thank you everyone) but today i got a special gift, christmas boxers from a close female friend. who would have thought. my brother greg is in for the weekend, it's great to see him. back to u of c monday. have a great weekend everyone. merry christmas.

12/11

well...i spent last night in the hospital. went in wednesday for a blood draw to check my counts and ended up spending the night. they gave me platlets yesterday but were concerned about my hemoglobin numbers. i initially refused to spend the night. i was scheduled to go back today for an appointment anyway. but while i was getting platlets, my oncolgist made a special visit to convince me to stay. she also told me that the donor they had found is a great match. the plan is to go back into the hospital immediately after new years to get the transplant. just another bump.

12/9

went to have blood drawn yesterday. my counts are hanging in there. i do need to be checked again tomorrow. and then back again thursday. spending alot of time driving to, and sitting at u of c. feeling okay. have a great day.

12/7

nothing new. feeling okay. back for a blood draw tomorrow. we'll see where my counts stand. go bears.

12/4 b

jani says i haven't been specific enough about my treatment options. so... as i've said the doctors are very happy with my progress. the best case scenario with the variant of leukemia i have is a stem cell transplant from a donor. initially we were told my brother greg was a match, but subsequent testing has shown he's "not their first choice". i know this broke my brother's heart, because he wanted to help in any way he could. they are doing a bone marrow bank search to try to find a "perfect match" for me. i think it just excuse to inject more money into their research coffers. i've been told they have found a couple of matches, but we are waiting for the donors to get checked again. i'm on the donor's schedule as to when they want to go in as an outpatient and donate their stem cells (a component of their blood). i see the oncologist on 12/11, and hopefully will have more info about the possible donors then. if no donors can be found, the second treatment option is to continue the consolidation treatments. i just finished the first one and would need three more. the positive of this is that the consolidations are 5-6 day stays, where the transplant is a 4 week stay. i am going to u of c tomorrow for a blood draw. they want to monitor my blood counts, and give me a transfusion if necessary. i'll also get a blood draw next monday, and 3 times a week until my counts recover. i hope this answers some questions, and i'll post info as i get it. keep the faith.

12/4

it was awesome to sleep in my own bed last night. no iv pumps buzzing in my ear and no 3 am rousts. feel much better today. trying to get used to the cold temps. time to start trying to build myself back up. along with putting on weight, i need to do some calisthenics or something.  as you all know, not part of my usual regiment. hoping everyone is well.  

12/3

sorry i haven't updated earlier, but still feeling the effects of last night treatment. i was released today, got home around 1:00. glad to be home. next appt is next thursday, when i hope i'll have more info. happy holidays to all.

12/2

feeling much better this morning. i was able keep dinner down, and just ordered breakfast. i'm actually hungry. all good. get the last round of chemo today/tonight. i hope to be feeling well enough to suffer at home on wednesday afternoon. then hope to line up a donor for a transplant in a couple of weeks. so far 44 days of incarceration, and 56 days without a beer. but who's counting. first snow in chicago. winter's here. happy holidays everyone!


Whooah, were half way there
Livin on a prayer
Take my hand and well make it - I swear
Livin on a prayer

12/1

more of the same. feeling a litttle blue. tired of being rousted all night long. hopefully get a couple of naps today, and be out of here by wednesday/ thursday. love you all.

11/30

jani's post said it all. just feeling very flu like. sleeping an awful lot. between the nausea and not eating, i lost 7 lbs. yesterday. oh well, only a couple of more days. can't believe it's december tomorrow. hopefully i'll be saying that when february rolls around. keep the faith.

Post from Jani

It's Saturday evening. and I just spent the day with Kurt. He's wiped out and pretty much slept all morning and day while I made bracelets and necklaces. It's as if he has a bad flu--headache, body aches, nausea, exhaustion. They administered chemo yesterday--at 3pm then 3am. He'll have his next dose tomorrow. It's going to be a tough 5 days. He didn't even drink his favorite, Oberweis chocolate milk shake, however I didn't have a problem polishing mine off. (I'm sure that's not on his heart healthy menu...we are working on calories at this point.) Speaking of heart healthy...he called the room service last night to order dinner, and they told he he was "restricted" to eat heart healthy. Mr. Steak was not happy. They wouldn't let him order a ham and cheese sandwich, but they let him have a hamburger. I'm confused. There's a lot that I need to learn about h.h. cooking! I'm learning a lot these days... I will be certified leukemia nurse by january! Please keep him in your prayers. Happy Holidays, jani

11/28

returned to u of c today. starting the first consolidation chemo this evening. the results of my bone marrow biopsy from tuesday were very good. i am considered in remission. everything is going as well as they had hoped. i will be here through the end of next week, receiving a more concentrated dose of one of the chemo drugs, trying to totally eradicate any trace of the disease. definitely ready to start moving forward again.

11/27

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE!

11/25

just returned from the bone marrow biopsy. had one of the pros do it, but a little more uncomfortable than her first one. feeling good, enjoying my home/family time very much. although i'm ready to get back at it. go in friday morning for 5-6 days of consolidation chemo treatment.  i won't post again until friday afternoon with all the latest news.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! my family and i are very thankful for all the love, support, prayers, meals, well wishes and the outpouring of concern and compassion from all our family and friends!

once again HAPPY THANKSGIVING everyone

11/24

at home this week. go to u of c for a bone marrow biopsy tomorrow, and will be admitted on friday for 5 days of chemo. i'm ready to move forward and put this all behind us.

11/23

nothing new. glad i get to spend thanksgiving at home. but i defintely want to get my treatments back on track. bone marrow tuesday, in patient on friday. happy thanksgiving everyone.

11/21

continuing to feel better. winter has come to chicago. it's pretty cold out. love ya

11/20

good morning. i just want to say i'm feeling fine. my in home nurse comes today to change my dressings and flush my hickman line. this is done every other day to prevent my line from coagulating. my agenda for today is to walk the dog, clean out a closet, and a couple of other miscellaneous things. believe it or not, counting the days to be readmitted. i wish i had a time machine to speed this whole thing up. want to put this whole mess behind me and move on. thanks for your continued support.

is my hair growing out? maybe a little.

11/19

i am definitely feeling stronger. not nearly as paranoid about my aches and pains. doing very small chores, trying not to over exert myself. taking the the dog around the block is an example. it is nice to spend some time with my kids and jani. love you all. keep us in your thoughts. thanks


You got to keep on keepin on
You got to keep your head up high
You gotta work with what you've got
And someday you will fly.

11/17

another long day at u of c. after meeting with the cardiologist he said my heart was healthy enough to resume chemo. he also said it was highly probable that i did have a minor heart attack on 9/26. when i went to e.r. on that monday it was with heart attack symptoms, but when they discovered the lump in my throat the diagnosis took a 180 degree turn. my oncologist said that i will have a bone marrow biopsy on tues. 11/25, and then be admitted on fri. 11/28 for the second round of chemo. i will be in the hospital for 5 to 6 days, although, i am now a "special " patient which could alter my stay. wish me luck and keep in your prayers. thanks again.

11/17

off to u of c today to meet with the oncologist and the cardiologist. hope to have a clearer picture of my treatment future soon. i'll let you know.

11/14

it was nice to sleep in my own bed last night. i feel good, although very hypochondriactic.  every little ache and pain is magnified. hope to not be so worried soon. trying to live as normally as possible. keep the faith.

11/13

home again. just a bump in the road. home for at least the weekend. back to u of c for a couple of appts. monday. feeling good, glad to be home.

11/12

still at lagrange memorial, and i will be sleeping here again tonight. after much discussion, my schedule should be as follows. discharged tomorrow, and at home for the weekend. i would go back to u of c for the biopsy and a meeting with the oncologist on monday. then home, hopefully through the next weekend. i would then start my first consolidation treatment on 11/24. this is all still very tentative. taking one day at a time. love you all

11/11

everyday is a winding road

experienced chest pain last night, wouldn't subside. drove to lagrange memorial at 10:30 pm to get an ekg. first 1 is slightly abnormal. after a couple of more, with the last one showing more abnormalities, they did an angiogram, then an angioplasty cleared a block in my right ventricle artery. this is not uncommon for leukemia patients, as my body is making way to many platlets. with my bone marrow biopsy at u of c hospital tomorrow at 8:30 am, i was very insistent to be released today. the compromise is to be transferred to u of c in an ambulance for further monitoring. waiting for a bed at u of c, hoping that all the blood thinners given won't delay my biopsy. i want to stay on my treatment schedule. keep praying. thank you.


i get a little closer to feeling fine

11/10

feeling stronger, gaining some weight back. still get winded pretty quickly. but getting better. my hair was starting to scare me, so i took matters into my own hands. next time for news is thursday afternoon.

11/8

been home for a couple of days, and it's been great. feeling fine, just don't have a lot of energy. i think that's why they sent me home. build myself up, so they can give the next treatment. meeting with the oncologist next thursday. hope to have a much clearer idea of what my immediate future holds. won't have any more news until then. my hair is definitely thinning out, as the picture shows. keep the faith.

11/6

HOME!

i'll be home 2 weeks and then back for another round of inpatient chemo.

i won't be updating for awhile, unless i go dancing.

thanks to everyone who supported my family and me. keep sending prayers. it's not over yet.

10/5 6:00

finally got the news i've been waiting for. i'm being released tommorow! still no details as to the next steps, but obviously very good news.

11/5

still waiting for the patholigists to finish my biospy. hope to know by this afternoon. while waiting, jani broke me out for some sun and fresh air. first time in 2+ weeks.

11/4

didn't sleep real well last night. lots of things going through my mind. physically i continue to get stronger and healthier. my white blood cell count contiunes to soar. the bottom of the normal range (the point at which the warden will commute my sentence) is 3.5. saturday morning i was .6, sunday morning 1.2, monday morning 2.1, 2.8 this morning. i'm obviously headed in the right direction. mentally i'm stronger now as well. i have some new emotional energy to focus on my condition. once again, thank you to all the family and friends who continue to support, understand, pray for, and send love to me and my family. jani, i need my pom-poms.

Just thinkin' about
Tomorrow
I just stick out my chin
And Grin,
And Say,
Oh! The sun'll come out
Tomorrow
So ya gotta hang on
'Til tomorrow
Come what may Tomorrow!

11/3

hair today, gone tomorrow. not coming out in clumps yet, but shedding hair pretty quickly. bone marrow biopsy today. fingers crossed! white blood cells are climbing steadily, although still below the level the warden would let me go. pray for a clean slate today. thanks.

an update. they did the bone marrow byopsy around 11. much more pleasant this time (if rooting around in your hip bone can be pleasant) now anxiously awaiting the results. (wed. morning)


last pic with hair?

11/2

feeling fine physically , but my incarceration is wearing on me mentally. all the clock change did is add an hour to my sentence. tomorrow is the day 21 bone marrow biopsy, with results Wednesday. praying for absolutely no evidence of any remaining leukemia cells. my future treatment direction is based on these results, so let's hope. awoke today with several hairs on the pillow, by far the most so far. i know there are people out there that want to see me bald, they might get to see it. go bears, and would someone please put jimmy johnson in the wall.

11/1

the start of a new month. who woulda thunk. the fevers seemed to have abated, i've gone a couple of days without one. still haven't found hair on the pillow, keeping my fingers crossed. feeling fine, just wish i had a time machine to speed up time.

no relevance, just a shot of an old hero.

happy halloween

they still haven't found any infections, although they continue to watch very closely. still receiving alot of unique visitors, always very interesting. i remember one of the saddest days as a child was being sick on halloween, and not being able to trick or treat (or whatever it was we did in those days). here again, i'm locked up when i should be out celebrating halloween as adults do these days. oh well, another day in paradise. luv ya all!

10/30

the biopsy results from yesterday were mixed. typically day 21 is the standard, but he was looking for an infection in my marrow, so did one on day 14. a very small amount of leukemia cells were still present. we're hoping that the will disappear over the next 7 days. wish i had more, but running out of things to say

10/29

over 21 days already under lockdown. with probably 12 to go. hard to remain optimistic, staring at my unchanging prison walls. the great piece of news from yesterday is that my brother greg is a perfect stemcell match for the next stage of treatment. supposedly a transfusion from a close family member leads to to the highest success rates.


they sicken of the calm, who knew the storm. dp

10/28

sorry, trying to keep it rated pg. feeling okay. a little sore from the butcher of hyde park, but nothing i can't overcome. hope to get the results from the biospy wednesday. hoping for a clean slate. still not much hair on my pillow, keeping the faith. i'm getting a transfusion today to elevate my counts. other than that another day in paradise.lov ya all

P.O.F.

Jani, here.  Kurt's a LLPOF-liar, liar pants on fire.  It's a bit more eventful than Kurt mentioned.  The week's events included high fevers of 103-104 every day which leads/led to chest x-rays, CT scans, and ultrasounds.  They are trying to find an infection because his fever is high.  So I walk in this morning to half his fanny showing, and five doctors/nurses surrounding one doctor who was giving him a bone marrow biopsy in his hip (to see if they can identify an infection).  After it was all over, Mr. Blow-the-Dr.-Some-S--t Bodell says, "So was that your first bone marrow biopsy?" Her reply, "No!  I've done over 20." It took her three tries to get some marrow!! He was really pissed.  Next time give him the dr. who has conducted 300!  The tool they use looks like a wine bottle opener.  Not pretty.  He was extremely loopy for a couple hours. I was calling him lumpy, but today it was Loopy.

Last night I forced Kurt to walk the hall. I recall saying, "Get your ass out of that chair, we're going for a walk." His reply, "I'm not happy about this." My response, "Too bad."   Then we watched the Family Guy.  Stewy and Brian make me scream.   Laughter truly is the best medicine.  xxoo Nurse Ratched

10/27

sorry i haven't posted in a couple of days. the weekends around here are very quiet. no new news, just counting the days. still have my hair keeping fingers crossed. love ya all.

Bald men are sexy-post from Jani not Kurt!

Just to make a point, bald men can be very sexy--yes I am in my 40s, but my views have never changed on this point.  Look at Yule Brenner or Bruce Willis.  I'm sure Johnny Depp would look hot too if he was bald.  Greg, do you have anything to say regarding this point?

have a good weekend,

jani

10/24 6:30

got some news today. the earliest i will be released is 26 days from the 1st chemo, which would be around nov. 10th. that is later than i had origanlly anticipated. oh well. feeling decent, just resigned for a long stay. also was told that i still might lose my hair, as late as next week. love ya all.

10/24

i was able to get some sleep last night, inspite of the continual poking/ prodding. feel pretty good. still have my hair, and am counting the days down to when i'll be sent home. hopefully by next weekend.

10/23

a slightly less restful night. maybe i was just more sensitive to all the poking and prodding. starting on blood products today, to try and build my counts. one step closer to the checkers.
once again, thank you all

10/22

another uneventful 24 hours. i've been feeling pretty good since lunch on monday. hope i've made the turn. definitely watching over my shoulder for the other shoe to drop though. thinking maybe an omelet this morning.

it may be bedhead, but it's still here.

10/21

i don't want to jinx myself, but i'm starting to feel more normal. got up this morning and made the trek to dcam for a fried egg sandwich, and some real coffee. now that's the kurt everybody knows. staring out my 6th floor window overlooking garfield park.i can see the leaves beginning to turn. it's wild watching the geese work the lake. i don't think a couple gunshot reports would even raise an eye brow in this neighborhood.

10/20 update

finished the last of the iv chemo around 7:30 tonight. hallelujah! shortly after being unhooked, i took the first shower in over a week. felt great.

Post from Queen Bee

Hello everyone, it's Oct. 20th, and my host has been sleeping most of my visit! Hmm, the nerve. Move on over, your hogging the bed, I'm exhausted. Just kidding, Kurt. Anyways, friends thank you to all for your thoughts and prayers. If you have difficulty commenting here, send Kurt an email at the3car@msn.com. Fill him in on your latest. Did anyone get fired? Have a baby? Go on vacation? Get a DUI? Tell all.

We are doing okay on the homefront, David is in final rehearsals for A Streetcar Named Desire, and Maddy just finished the tennis team and is hangin' and shopping temporarily. As for me, the excitement continues with my manly duties, I brought my car in for service, disposed of a warm, dead bird, killed gigantic bugs in my home, dragged down the garbage and paid bills. However, my next creative adventure will be making jewelry and painting notecards at U of C. It makes the time fly.

Thanks Greg and Kristin for hanging out with Kurt so I can get some peace of mind.

Take care, jani (janibodell@gmail.com)

10/20

a good restful night. feeling pretty good this morning. supposedly days 8-10 are kinda rough, so hopefully by the end of the week i'll being feeling even better. when they disconnect the iv tonight i'll be able to take my first shower in a week. really looking forward that. so hope to post a picture of my handsome self later tonight. i am always asking dave who this quote is attributed to (dorothy parker) but it is one of my favorites and very appropriate now.


they sicken of the calm, who knew the storm

10/19

feeling pretty good right now, kinda ebbs and flows though. i get the 7th and last treatment tonight. almost home.

10/18

good news is i never saw thae soup again. nothing has really changed. just another tired day. my sister kristin is in town, so that definately brightened the day. today was the comer's children hospital walk. it is encourouging to hear about a bunch of young cancer survivers. if they can do it, so can this not quite middle aged man.

10/17

i went with the soup

10/17

starting feeling much better yesterday afternoon. was able to eat some food and didn't see it again. the question is, do you want have bowl of soup, so it comes back up painlessly? or something with more texture, which might be more difficult coming back, but not nearly as messy. just having thoughts like this confirms i've got a screw loose somewhere. i have a feeling the next several day are going to be more of this mundane crap. nothing to update, just moving toward the goal line. as always, keep the faith! love you all kurt

10/16

a little less comfortable last night. leaking from both ends. although i felt MUCH better after. last night was the last dose of the stronger drug. so, hopefully it'll be smooth from here on out. another thing is, today is 1/2 way through the treatment. all downhill from here (where going downhill is a good thing) once again , thanks to everyone for all the kind thoughts and prayers. we will survive!

10/15

my brother greg arrived from california today. very happy to see each other. the chemo regime they have me on is a one drug 24hrs a day for 7 days (this has very little side effects) the other one is 1 hr a day for 3 days. the side effects i've experienced from this one are flu like symtoms, fever, muscle soreness and fatique. i receive my last dose of this one tonight. hopefully i'll be feeling more normal by tomorrow afternoon.

A Post from Jani

Hello all. Thanks for reading Kurt's blog. Please keep him in the loop of you, your life, crazy stories about work/neighborhood--that will be a big help to brighten his day to the outside world. On the home front, Madeline (freshman) and David (junior) are hanging in there. They have a super group of friends, as they are friends with each other, so they have support. I am going to take them to the Wellness House which helps cancer patients families. As for all of you, thank you for supporting me. I love you friends. You make me laugh and help me cry--I am truly blessed. I know I can call any of you at any time. My car is on autopilot with T.I., Rihanna, Tragically Hip, Andrew Bird, Kanye West etc... on the ipod/radio, my veins are filled with coffee, Diet Mountain Dew and chocolate chip cookies (thanks Deb and Diane!!!). I'm trying to keep my head above water--taking a few minutes for walks/Pilates, laughing with my friends and sleep. Last night I went with my friend, Mari to see the author, David Sedaris at the Auditorium Theatre. He is my favorite author, who is hilarious. I laughed so hard my face hurt. Thank you, Kurt for the tickets.

Today is Tuesday, I think. Kurt started chemo late, last night. His mom was here in the a.m. I'm here this afternoon. He has been napping alot--baseball isn't even on the TV! (Is it still baseball season?). His brother, Greg is coming in town tonight; his sister is arriving on Friday. Come by and say hi--visitors are welcome, unless you have any suspicion of a cold or germs. He isn't allowed raw vegetables or fruit--if you all know Kurt, that's right up his alley. He usually says, "Yukopitewi." He can't have flowers or plants in the room.

That's it for now. XXOO Merci beau coup mi amigos,
jani

10/13 11:00 pm

i 've started down the road to recovery!

10/13

a very long, unproductive day. a couple more tests and a visit to the dentist. i did finally speak with "the team" and they did tell me that i have flt-3 chromozone mutation. around 45% of all aml is flt-3. they said there is an over 90% remission rate. also told me i should be connected very soon. supposedly i won't be feeling blue until 8-10 days out. i'm glad it's post season baseball because i'll be falling asleep to the dodgers again.

10/11-10/12

here i am on sunday. big day tomorrow

the hospital basiclly closes for the weekend, except for emergencies. so there was not much done to me medically. i had an unbelievable parade of visitors both sat. and sun. thank you very much to all who came. i appreciate everyone's well wishes and prayers very much. i was commenting how i was going to loose 20 pounds, and someone said i'd still be a fat f**k. now that's what friends are for. my last real meals before treatment included, johnnie's beef, alpine sub, aurelio's pizza and an omelet from lou mitchell's. fat and happy.

10/10

very busy day being bused around from test to test. one of the test today was a radiated sugar test. they inject a small amount of a radiated dye, which is attracted by any cancer cells in your body. it appears i only have 2 small abnormal nodes in my chest and the 2 in my throat. another piece of good news.

10/9

arrived at uc around 2:30 and was admitted. met with one of my oncolgist dr. odenke. she explained was to be expected. leukemia is a disease of the bone marrow. your bone marrow produces platlets, red and white blood cells. leukemia invades the marrow space and produces cancer cells instead of healthy blood cells. leukemia is typically diagnosed by very low blood counts. my blood counts are normal, meaning the leukimia has not completely overtaken my marrow spaces. this is one of many very encouraging things for me. another is my age. the typical leukemia patient is diagnosed at 65, so all the statistics you see don't truly relate to me. i am at the extreme end of the data pool. my age and health allows a extremely agressive treatment regime that older patients couldn't withstand. after meeting with dr. odenke, i had a bone marrow biopsy. these results will be ready monday morning.

10/8

jani and kurt's 20th wedding anniversary!

had a follow up appointment with dr. harper to review the excise biopsy. was told i didn't have lymphoma but acute myelogenous leukemia. we reviewed my blood work from my physical in april, and there were no signs of blast cells. this is very encouraging because the disease was not present 6 months ago. we reviewed basic expectations, but was told to wait for a call from the oncolgist, dr. mateson. went home and dr mateson called. he told me to come to the hospital the next day expecting to be admitted. i said i would bring a bag and expect to spend the night. he said to expect to spend the next 3-4 weeks in the hospital.

10/7

went in for the opening. sent home by my co-workers.

10/6

suffering from cabin fever, i went to work and was able to stay all day.

10/3-10/4

i was sent home. after several hours of waiting for my release, i drove myself home around 2:00pm. was able to drive my corvette and enjoy a nice weekend.

10/2

had the excise biopsy before lunch. went for a full torso mri as well. around 11 pm, sound asleep with all the lights off, a roommate comes in. they turn on every light followed by several doctors and 4 or 5 family members making an unbelivable amount of noise. they couldn't care that another patient was in the room. close to 2 am before all settled down and i was able to go to sleep.

10/1

very long day. after fasting from 8:00 pm the night before, it isn't until 12:30 before they inform me the procedure has been rescheduled for the next day. nothing else was done to me/ with me the rest of day. started fasting again after dinner to prepare for the next day. no roommate again.

9/30

parade after parade of doctors roll through my room. u of c being a teaching hospital, means they always travel in large packs. i am given a fine needle biopsy, where they remove a very small sample of the tumor to biopsy. the results come back confirming it is a tumor. with this knowledge, they schedule an excise biopsy. this is a surgical procedure where they remove one entire abnormal gland. they tell me to fast as this is scheduled for tomorrow. first night without a roommate, and i sleep pretty well.

9/29

i go to work with the intention of going to the doctor after the close, but with intervention from my co-workiers i leave for the hospital around 10:30. my general doctor is will harper at the university of chicago, and i had had a full physical in april, so i arrived at the u of c e.r. around 11. you have never seen people move faster than when you walk into an e.r. and say "i think i had a heart attack". surrounded by screaming babies and crying adults, i am immediately taken to an examination room. after being connected to an ekg and showing no signs of a heart attack, the extreme urgency exhibited just seconds ago is gone. i am moved to a stall in the back of the e.r. where, after quite sometime, a doctor begins examining me. in the course of the examination, trying to figure out my symptoms, i mention that i have a swollen gland in my throat. i have had water in my ear and the swollen gland for about 6 weeks. i thought it was an ear infection. after the doctor sees this, he orders a ct scan of my throat and some blood work. after he sees the results, he comes in, and tells me i have a malignant tumor in my throat. the blood work had shown that i had "blast cells" (inmature cancer cells) and the ct scan confirmed it was a tumor.
as i sit there, he says "do you understand the gravity of what i just told you." as i numbly shake my head, he tells me that i am being admitted. as the news sinks in, i call jani, and tell her that the good news is i didn't have a heart attack, but the bad news is i have lymphoma (the original diagnosis) and have been admitted. it turns out leukimia is misdiagnosed as lymphoma over 50% of the time. jani immediately packs me a bag and comes to the hospital. she arrives around 4, and we spend the next several hours waiting for a bed upstairs. it turns out to be 11:00 pm before i am given a bed in a non private room. very long night.

9/28

i have been experiencing back pain and shortness of breath. the back pain is much higher up than i have had in the past. the shortness of breath comes and goes, but is not related to excersion. i have been taking quite a bit of tylenol/ advil for the back pain. jani witnesses a bout of extreme heartburn ( the doctors later say the acid reflux was in response to all the tylenol/advil i had been taking). with the symptoms of shortness of breath, back/ chest pain, and heartburn, jani is sure that i am having a heart related issue. she is ready to call 911, but i convince her it is only heartburn, and i would go to the doctor the next day.