Articles from The Journal of a Prizefighter

day +83
2007-11-12 14:26:00
All continues to look good at this point. Every day that passes is another day forward. At this morning's check-up, I learned that my blood counts were fine and that there's still no sign of either EBV or the Adenovirus. With regards to last week's CT scan (without contrast) of my lungs, the written report stated "groundglass infiltrate in the right azygoesophageal recess is stable in extent. This may represent a chronic inactive inflammatory process. Other etiologies however cannot be excluded, and periodic follow-up is recommended." Dr. Castro-Malaspina, however, doesn't seem alarmed by the groundglass infiltrate at all. Though I'm naturally interested to learn more about what this means, I try to remind myself that if he was concerned seriously about it he'd let me know. So, I should just take heed and relax. As he told me this morning, if I was coughing or had difficulty breathing then he might be a bit concerned, but I'm fine. So, I will start to see him every two w ...

in the news
2007-11-12 14:01:00
Over There - and Gone ForeverWill Success, or All That Money From Google, Spoil Firefox?Google Options Make Masseuse a MultimillionaireA New York Honor, Centuries Old and Gold-Plated ...

day +82
2007-11-11 21:37:00
My wanderlust continues.This afternoon I walked by the new Yankee Stadium to check the progress of its construction before continuing north along Sedgewick Avenue (which runs parallel to the Major Deegan Expressway) to the High Bridge, New York City's oldest bridge. Though it's called a bridge, it's really an aqueduct. Built in 1848, the High Bridge was constructed as part of the Old Croton Aqueduct which brought a reliable source of clean water 41 miles from Westchester County to the burgeoning New York population of the mid-nineteenth century. Soon after its opening, the High Bridge became a popular attraction for New Yorkers and tourists alike as it offered sweeping vistas of the cavernous Harlem River at a height of 116 feet. It also became a popular promenade for pedestrians walking between upper Manhattan and the Bronx. Like the Aqueduct, the High Bridge was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1992.Admiring its towering arches and its aesthetic beauty, I was remin ...

lymphoma news
2007-11-11 21:10:00
Forgetting Everything Eileen brought to my attention this interestingly rare medical case in which Hodgkin's Disease was the diagnosis.Exercise, Counseling Fight-Cancer Related Fatigue ...

in the news
2007-11-11 21:07:00
If It Ain't BrokeHowling at the MoonExperts Discuss Engineering Feats, Like Space Mirrors, to Slow Climate Change This reminds me of one of the Highlander movies in which the inhabitants on the future Earth were shielded by an enormous man-made shield that blocked out the Sun's harmful UV radiation, thereby, creating a surreal terrestrial environment shrouded in darkness (akin to the Batman movies).Remnants of Yellowstone Supervolcano Still ActiveAuthor Explains Mysteries of Music and the MindChubby Gets a Second LookThe Web Takes Ron Paul for a RideTough Guy With Charm, Often Living on the EdgeCity's Newest Food Co-op Gains a Foothold in the South BronxVeterans' Rolls Decline Here as Fewer Enlist and More Move ...

american art and sculpture at sotheby's
2007-11-10 21:13:00
Below are some of the wonderful pieces of art that I looked at in Sotheby's American Paintings, Drawings & Sculpture catalogue this afternoon, all of which will be on the auction block at Sotheby's on November 28th.Pink and White RosesJohn Ferguson WeirAcross Taos ValleyErnest Martin HenningsThe Runaway CoupleJessie Willcox SmithPanEdward McCartanBurntheadGeorge BellowsNarcissaHovsep PushmanThree Men in a CanoeWinslow HomerNew Year's BabyJoseph C. Leyendecker ...

day +80
2007-11-09 19:07:00
On Wednesday, Megan, the genetic counselor for Dr. Kenneth Offit, called in order to tell me that there's no genetic test for lymphoma at the moment, but that I could sign up for a research study instead. A month or two before transplantation, I contacted Dr. Offit's office at Sloan-Kettering expressing my interest in participating in a genetic screening that would assess the risk for any potential offspring for developing lymphoma, especially Hodgkin's Disease. February 26, 2008 was the scheduled appointment date. However, according to Megan such a test exists for other cancers but not for lymphoma at the moment. The fact that my grandmother (my father's mother and my only surviving grandparent), who was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2004 and then, treated surgically in 2005 but who in the past week we've learned has had a reoccurrence, doesn't change my eligibility for a genetic test.Interestingly, there's a question if I'd be eligible for even the research study now, ...

cancer news
2007-11-07 15:36:00
To Avoid the Big C, Stay Small I was active and made a good conscientious effort to take care of my health, but I got cancer. Like most people I enjoyed sweets here and there, but overall I maintained a pretty good diet. Yet, cancer came. There are just so many variables, some known and others not known. There are no absolutes. Nevertheless, I still think these well-known guidelines are, of course, beneficial for general health and well-being. As for lymphoma, I could be wrong but I don't think diet and weight are the greatest risk factors. I know many people with lymphoma, who are far from being overweight. The evidence suggests that for cancer of the colon and prostate, for example, weight and poor diet can be significant risk factors but not so much with lymphoma, I think. ...
Cancer

in the news
2007-11-07 15:06:00
What Makes a Great Gangster? Entertaining and informative.Guinness Names 7-foot-8 Virginia Man Tallest in U.S.Eight-Limbed Indian Girl Has Successful SurgeryAstronomers Discover Record 5th Planet Around Nearby Star 55 CancriTaming the Guzzlers That Power the World Wide WebRise of the MachinesPort Authority Sets Its Sights on Robust List of ProjectsBidding War for Rodriguez Needs 2 Teams ...

day +77
2007-11-06 10:37:00
The Sirolimus dosage has been reduced a bit further. This morning Ally called me informing me that Dr. Castro-Malaspina had changed the dosage from .75mL to .5mL. ...

day +76
2007-11-05 20:30:00
Dr. Castro-Malaspina continues to be pleased with my progress. At my appointment, I learned that my blood counts remain good (WBC: 8.2; HGB: 13.4; platelets: 197).My explanation a few days ago regarding the change in my Sirolimus dosage was wrong. It wasn't because of the high Creatinine level. Rather, as Dr. Castro-Malaspina explained to me today, the reduction in the dosage is due to his desire to begin to slowly taper down the immunosuppressive drugs so that my donor's T-cells will possess the needed mobility required to achieve the Graft-versus-Lymphoma (Hodgkin's) Effect. Of course, as he reiterated, the balance between GVL and GVHD is fine and narrow. So hopefully, this reduction in the dosage of the immunosuppressives won't expedite the risk of developing severe GVHD.The written report of this morning's CT scan of my lungs should be available in 2-3 days. ...

flew and sagan (and god)
2007-11-05 19:45:00
Until reading, The Turning of an Atheist, in Sunday's NYT Magazine I hadn't heard of the name, Antony Flew. Now I have. It's quite interesting how this British philosopher has become something of a symbolic hot potato between atheists and deists.I finished Carl Sagan's The Varieties of Scientific Experience: A Personal View of the Search for God. Like his other books, this one (a collection of his famous Gifford Lectures in 1985) is remarkable. Cerebral. Eloquent. Compassionate. Profound. I recommend this one highly. Though the passages I selected below illustrate just a glimpse of this fantastic compilation's beauty, I want to share some of the words said by Sagan that stood out to me. These are merely a sample, which alone don't do Sagan the justice deserved. One must read the entire book to appreciate it fully. In a time when it seems like compassion and reason are becoming increasingly pressed by extremism and indifference towards the welfare of our planet as a wh ...

in the news
2007-11-05 19:31:00
Radcliffe Shakes Off RivalArmstrong Comes Back for More Too bad I missed Lance when he passed through the Bronx yesterday, but I was pleased to learn that he beat his time last year by about 13 minutes.Lance Armstrong Finds His Groove at '07 NYC MarathonAs the marathoners ran along 138th Street towards the Madison Avenue Bridge, I saw many wearing Livestrong, Team in Training, and the orange-colored Fred's Team jerseys. Fred's Team is a group of first-time and experienced marathon runners with the common goal of raising funds for Sloan-Kettering and cancer research.In Portland, Cultivating a Culture of Two Wheels Very interesting article. Since Cliff is an enthusiastic cyclist, I forwarded this article to him thinking he'd be interested.Obama Plays Convincing Obama in a Skit Mocking ClintonIs (His) Biography (Our) Destiny? Though a lot of his message offers the opportunity for an attractive new change in American politics, it looks like (at least for the moment) that Obama's ...

nyc marathon photos 2007
2007-11-04 17:37:00
Today my dad and I stood on 138th Street between Rider Avenue and Walton Avenue where we watched the marathon's participants run westwards under the Metro North overpass towards the Madison Avenue Bridge back into Manhattan. Around where we stood on 138th Street, the crowd was thin when we first arrived there but it looked as if closer towards Third Avenue there were more people. I could cross easily from one side of 138th Street to the other where we stood, but once the elite runners had passed and then after a sizable gap appeared, the majority of the marathon's participants made it our way after which time crossing the street became impossible.A number of police officers and a group of enthusiastic fire fighters were at the scene. A small group of members from the Van Courtlandt Track Club had assembled along 138th Street just behind the overpass and they were very supportive of the runners with cheers and words of encouragement. So, as the marathon progressed, more and more p ...

day +74
2007-11-03 22:07:00
Yesterday I continued my Watson-like wanderlust of New York City. When I left home, my aim was to walk north to the Washington Bridge at 181st Street, which is located just north of both the Alexander Hamilton Bridge (which going westwards connects with the George Washington Bridge and New Jersey) and the High Bridge (NYC's oldest bridge) over the Harlem River. But because of a few mistakes, I unknowingly bypassed the Washington Bridge and instead found myself at the University Heights Bridge, which is about 2.5 miles north of my original destination. The University Heights Bridge is one of the few Bronx-Manhattan bridges that I had yet to cross, but it wasn't on my agenda for Friday. However I was there, so I embraced the opportunity and crossed it into Manhattan arriving at the intersection of West 207th Street and 9th Avenue. Immediately north of the University Heights Bridge in the distance is the West 207th Street subway depot, where my dad works. From the bridge itself lo ...

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