As I’ve said before, getting my kidneys to work on their own is huge, and will make treating my cancer drop from being extremely difficult to just difficult. I had labs today. In summary, my toxins (creatinine and BUN) are still double the normal limit but have remained flat during two days of no dialysis.…

I am finding that one of the most difficult things about being suddenly and seriously ill is trying to figure out how I can care for the care-givers, meaning my family. Of course, when someone like me is seriously ill, the attention first points to me. But then, we must start to care for the…

A long time ago I had a friend who had been the director of the Salvation Army in a large Midwestern city. She had a theology degree and had received a lot of awards for her innovation in helping the homeless population as well as the single moms of her city. Then suddenly, she came…

I now have three books started, I’m talking about books that I’m writing. I have two books that I’m reading, Stones of Summer, and In the Beauty of the Lilies. Two of the books that I’m writing, Rock Harbor and Christiana Athena; The Girl with the Headaches, are both about done. I’m just editing them…

I remember, like it was yesterday, sitting around a table in a graduate course on medical ethics. We would have these scenarios presented, and then we would have to make an ethical decision on the best course, as an ethics panel. Many hospitals have such panels. For example, on your floor you have; a) 25…

Okay, I will organize this as the Good, The Bad, and the Ugly. The Good: I just started my second round of chemo yesterday. It went without a hitch, no side effects (so far). I met with my oncologist today. My IgA Free Lambda Light Chain (the type of protein my Multiple Myeloma is over-producing)…

In an attempt to clarify that this not intended as a criticism, but a simple observation, I will start with my own story of my mistake. I do have new insights, however, now that I’m on the other side.   One of the top five mistakes of my life, okay (thinking now, that there were…

Typo: My BUN at admission was 125, not 15.

I was waiting to give an update when everything was rosy, but that was a mistake. In this battle (if you ask anyone battling cancer), if anything is rosy, it is quickly guarded by issues in the other direction. I will give bullet point updates for the casual reader details for family and friends who…

You can call it cause, calling, or life purpose. Some would expand the concept to proverbial philosophical question about the meaning of life. Sometimes your calling or purpose is clear, sometimes it is ambiguous. Many people struggle with the question of their purpose for years or decades. Some for their entire life. A month ago,…