Once more into the breach...

Well...here we are. Time for round 2 of high-dose IL-2. Um...yippie...or something...

This afternoon, Lisa & I head out to Houston for the 17th time this summer. (OK, not really 17th...7th, actually. All since the 1st week of May. I'm thinking of registering my cars out there & applying for Astros season tickets...*sigh*)

This time, though some things will be different:
--we'll know what to expect (this is mostly good...right? right??)
--I'll definitely ask for a double-port PICC line up front this time. Having 2 PICCs installed in 24 hours is not as much fun as it sounds...
--Assuming things stay on sched, dose 3 & dose 6 would be at 1:00 a.m. Last time, for the one dose @ 1:00 a.m., I never even woke up, nor did I have any symptoms. So, that could be helpful, were the pattern to continue.
--I'll know to hit the nurse call button immediately when the 1st hint of chills shows up. (or any other side effects, for that matter)
--most important, it's Shark Week on the Discovery Channel! *and the crowd roars* Watching sharks in action will be a great reminder to me that it could be worse. Lisa is not nearly as excited about Shark Week as I...*grin* BTW, James & I saw one in the wild off the pier @ Orange Beach Friday. Very cool. And just a tad scary, even though we were standing on a pier at the time...

Early scouting reports about round 2 experiences are mixed. On the one hand, knowing what to expect on our part and on the medical folks' part may help. On the other hand, it seems that dose 1 "trains" the immune system to "turn on" sooner, so some patients don't get as far. The bottom line is, by the sustaining grace of my God and through His answering of the prayers of so many of you, my friends, I'm planning to make as many doses as I can, whether 3, 5, 6, or 14.

So, what to pray? Pray as the Spirit guides, of course. Here are a few suggestions:
--for endurance for both Lisa and me
--for wisdom for all the medical personnel involved
--for as many doses as possible
--for the IL-2 to work!!
--for James & Anne back home
--for Mom in FL - she's having to walk this road with us; no mother wants to see her baby sick (and I am her baby, despite my advanced weight, I mean age...)
--for Jim & his fam in AL - he remembers round 1 well...and not very fondly!

It's our strong hope and prayer that in 3 weeks (counting this round 2 week), Dr. Homsi is telling us that it worked & there are no more tumors. In the midst of a yucky medical situation, there's still much to commend that hope. Keep in mind, though, that this is a very yucky medical situation. Metastatic melanoma is a nasty, nasty booger.

Right up at the top of that list of "hope commenders"...ruling over that list...is a loving God Who is totally able to heal completely! Sometimes He heals by totally supernatural means; "Rise, take up your mat, and walk." Sometimes, He heals by totally "natural" means, via surgeries (had one!) and immunotherapy (got that t-shirt!) and such. I'm not choosy; either of those would be great! Sometimes, though, He opts to calm and offer His presence enroute to what Wayne Watson calls "the ultimate healing." That is my ultimate goal & destination one day...and I hope and pray it's yours!...but I'm asking God to delay that one a bit in favor of one of the other 2.

I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us...For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Romans 8:18, 24-25

Thanks so much for your continued prayers and love during this bend in the road. We see the fingerprints of God all over you, and we are so very humbled and grateful. Celebrate His Presence and His work today, won't you?

With much love and great hope,
Mike