3rd Round of Maintenance Rituxin

All went well today with my 3rd infusion. The chemo room was overflowing with customers this morning. I was happy to be one of the first. The Benadryl made me very sleepy. I planned to nap when I got home after lunch, but Bennett wouldn’t have any of it. He had been in bed for an hour, but he started jumping up and down when I got home. I got him up. After he played a while, I walked him around the block. Karin came home from work around 3:00. Bennett took a nap when she got home.

Tonight we went to the Precinct Deli. We bought subs and pizza for a few close friends that supported us while we were gone by participating in 3 fundraisers that Bob & Shiela put on in my honor. They presented us a check tonight. I was honored to receive it and to have such great support this last 1.5 years.

Were off to bed soon. I began working my shift rotation as shift supervisor or First Line Leader (FLL) in the Fiber Department at International Paper Savannah Mill this week. I am on days. I set my alarm for 4:20 am to be out the door by 5:20. My changeover meeting is at 6 am. Next Tuesday I begin nights.

Mark

Second Round of Maintenace Rituxin went fine




My second round (of four - at 6 months post transplant) maintenance rituxin infusions went fine. It was faster than the first, but still ran from ~8:30 until near noon. I feel fine with no ill effects. I turned in another $500 today to the American Cancer Society for the Relay for Life. I did my daily walk this afternoon.

Tomorrow night I speak to the sailors at the Savannah Yacht Club as they kick off the season for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Leukemia Cup Regatta in Savannah. I have been selected to be the Honored Hero for the Regatta season in Savannah.

Tomorrow is my last day as Process Engineering Support for the Fiber Department at the International Paper Savannah, Ga Mill. Sunday I return as a shift manager or First Line Leader for the Fiber Department overseeing a woodyard, waste water treatment, and two pulping digesters. My engineering position was eliminated on January 31st of last year (2006). That is Karin's birthday and the day that I received my confirmed diagosis of Follicular Lymphoma. The two of us will never ever forget that date. IP has been great with me during treatment, my leave of absence, and my recuperaton since transplant. It is time to get this shift work rotation behind me. It will not be permanent.

Mark

Beach Bum Parade Pics

These are a few pics from last Friday night at the Tybee Island 20th annual Beach Bum Parade. This is one of the worlds biggest adult(mostly) water fight. No real action shots as it is too wet for the camera at a close distance.

T+ 7 Months , 1st Infusion Round 1 Maintenance Rituxin

My first maintenance Rituxin infusion went fine. It is slow each time that I restart to insure that I don’t have any infusion reactions (fever, chills, shaking etc.). It takes more than 4 hours to deliver the 1 bag. It will speed up on my remaining 3 Wednesday treatments. Thankfully there are much less complications with Rituxin only compared to the R-CHOP regimen that I was doing at this time last year. I drink lots of fluids to move the stuff through my body, but at least this time there are no poisins that will ruin my bladder if I don’t get rid of them on time. I was not as gray-pale at the end of this session as I was with previous chemo. I was fatigued most of the afternoon, but overcame that into the evening. I intended to get to bed early but was not able to.

Mark

Relay For Life 2007 is a Success!



Blogger was acting up last night so I was not able to complete my post until today.



I think that we are in the ballpark of $3,000 turned in and pledged to the Bald for Best team. The four of us that were registered (Mark, Karin, Kenny, & Joe) received an award for the highest percentage of team present all night [100%!]. The tatoo application took quite a while and many of them turned out fantastic. There were a few malfunctions and we freehanded them (thankfully there are a few artists in the group). Thanks to those that came out to support us and helped with the tattoos and artistry (Royce & Sarah, Chris & Tammy, Jennifer C, and others). Thanks to all of you for your donations and pledges. We tattooed, walked, stayed up late, snacked, slept a little, had pancakes, and had a blast. It was very, very humid and we were glad to have good cover to keep the dew off of us. There were a lot of folks with no shelter (we learned our lesson in the cold last year).



Again, thanks for your support,



Mark



Morning After Pics

.

.

.

The Headshaving is Done!

Thanks to Robert for joining the gang.

Thanks to Gary and The Barber Pole once again for his assistance and donation of his time and place.

Friday night at 7:oo pm we walk.

Thanks for your support, your donations and your pledges.

Mark

Relay for Life Preparations are Hastily Underway

I apologize for this short notice, but we have all been busy for a few weeks.

See the attached flyer at the right for details. Click on it to enlarge it.

When you see me bald again, it is not because of therapy, but because my gang and I are shaving our heads again (this time to honor the others that are going through chemo). The American Cancer Society Relay for Life in Savannah takes place Friday Night (5/11/07) through Sat am. We are again selling advertising space for businesses and names of individuals whodonate. The walk takes place at Benedictine School Track beginning at 7:00pm.



If you want to donate & see/participate in the head shaving, it will takeplace Thursday night (5/10) at the Barber Pole beginning at 6:00 pm. Thisis located at 110 Bull Street, just south of Broughton. Call me if you plan to come by.


We will accept pledges and get your name on our heads. Your gift to the American Cancer Society is tax deductible. We will provide you with a receipt for tax purposes if you include a mailing address (if it is not already on your check).

Contact us to make a pledge

Even if you do not see this until after the walk, your donation to the American Cancer Society is always welcome.

We will be taking donations for a while after the walk.


Maintenace Rituxan to begin next week

I had a short visit with my Oncologist Dr. Negrea today. I had my port flushed and my CBC’s were pretty good. I will begin maintenance Rituxin biological therapy next week on Wednesday for 4 weeks. The first infusion will be over 4 hours and they should speed up on subsequent weeks. This will continue at 6 months intervals for 2 years. There should be little or no side effects from this treatment as I tolerated it well previously.

Thanks from all of us for your support,

Mark

Project “Best” Construction

Thanks to friends and family for the construction projects this past weekend. There was good progress made on a laundry room and workshop in our garage. Thanks to: Steve Routh for leading the carpentry, Joe & Diana Lorber for assisting, Dad for painting, and Mom for watching Bennett. Also a big thanks to the Wilsons for housing Joe & Di and for letting us have dinner with them. It was funny how many people stopped by to see if we were having a garage sale with all our stuff in the driveway. Thankfully the rain that we needed significantly held off until Saturday night. A few pics to follow:


Stay posted later today for details of our Relay for Life plans.

Mark