The Schedule FYI

Monday
1. 9:00 a.m. - bloodwork (note the time: Houston rush hour, here we come! *sigh*)
2. Appt. w/ Dr. Homsi after bloodwork (time uncertain; last time there were many dozen people waiting to have blood drawn)
3. PICC line installation after appt. w/ Dr. Homsi - this involves a cart ride along the walkway because it's very far from the MDA clinic complex
4. Twiddle thumbs & wait...a fair amount of the afternoon & early evening
5. 11:00 p.m. - admission to ICU (that's not a typo; 11:00 in the evening...normally, I'm approaching REM-cycle sleep by 11:00...oh well)

Tuesday
1st bloodwork will be drawn around 4:30 - 5:00 a.m. - What a special way to start one's day!
1st IL-2 dose should be hung on my IV pole at 9:00 (ish) a.m.
2nd dose should be hung around 5:00 p.m.
3rd dose should be hung around 1:00 a.m. (which, of course, makes it Wednesday)

(repeat as much as possible, up to 14 doses max)

Each dose takes about 15 minutes for the small bag to empty. Blood will drawn prior to each dose. I've never particularly minded getting stuck, but this will be about 6 times a day. Which doesn't count the PICC line sticks. (Thanks to a nice bluefish, I went ahead & got started w/ the sticking part Friday; that sucker flipped one more time, thereby jamming a hook rather deep into my thumb. I showed him though...I threw him off the pier).

As you pray--and thank you so much for doing so!!--please remember Lisa, who will be there through every pound of fluid gain, every bag hung on the IV pole, every shiver, every degree of fever, every 5:00 a.m. blood drawing, every conversation w/ the nurses & Drs., and whatever other side effects show up this time. Hers will not be a restful week. Please pray for Lisa to be able to sleep/rest as much as possible this week.

For those inclined to email us there, here's a refresher on how to do that. They print these out & bring them to our room a couple of times a day. And the emails are outstanding pick-me-ups for both of us! As before, no obligation at all...just a reminder should you be so inclined.
--go to mdanderson.org
--click on "current patients" on the left
--scroll down to "message to a patient" and click on it
--My info: Mike Madaris...male, last time I checked...May sixteen, nineteen fifty nine (young, thank you very much!)...my number is 747231

Lisa and/or James will be updating here now & then this week. Thanks again for praying!

"We are the broken, You are the healer..."

With Love and Hope,
Mike