Spring

Spring is officially here. Baseball season has started, and Peter made his school's team. He finally got the OK from the hand doctor to swing a bat, about an hour before try-outs. He's happy, and so are we.

The rain around here will eventually stop -- I assume -- and the nice spring weather will make its way here. The kids are looking forward to it.

And they're looking forward to cook-outs, too, one of their favorite things about the warm weather.

I don't usually look forward to them. I like like the food well enough, when I can actually eat it. But I lose half of what I cook due to hot dogs rolling off the grill.

Thank goodness this product has arrived. Check out their website, too.

You won't be able to eat just one. And now we know why.

This is not the kind of thing a cancer patient is supposed to be encouraging.....

Targeted Therapies

Cool video from the Cancerwise blog, published by M.D. Anderson Hospital in Houson, one of the better hospitals for lymphoma in the country. The blog entry features a video interview with Dr. Anas Younes, a lymphoma researcher at Anderson.


The video takes you through the research process for lymphoma drugs, particularly those drugs known as "targeted therapies" (which are pretty much the only kind of treatments being developed these days). Younes explains how his team looks at newly developed drugs and determines how they affect lymphoma cells at the genetic level -- how they affect the genes within the cells. (That's what makes them "targeted" -- unlike conventional chemotherapy, which wipes out pretty much anything in its path, targeted therapies seek out cancer cells specifically and mess with their genes, causing them to die, or at least stop growing.)


After the team identifies promising treatments in the lab, they are tested in a series of trials on humans to determine if they will work -- and will be safe.


I've written a lot about targeted therapies before. It's absolutely the future of cancer research, not just lymphoma research. As Younes points out, the targeting means greater effectiveness with less toxicity -- again, very unlike chemotherapies.


I thought it was interesting that Younes says that, after they find a promising drug in the lab, they start to use it in various combinations. Combinations, he says, are the most likely source for a cure, rather than single agents. Makes sense: survival rates for Follicular NHL have nearly doubled since Rituxan, a targeted therapy, has been combined with all sorts of other existing treatments.


Here's the video. It's a little over three minutes long, and a little bit science-y, but kind of cool to see how the whole process works.

The Bands Played On

This past Saturday, both John and Peter participated in the FMI All-State Bands concert. Peter's done it before, but it was John's first time.


The FMI All-State Bands are open to kids in Catholic schools in Connecticut, and the program consists of four bands: Gala, Concert, Symphonic, and Jazz. John was invited to join the Gala band this year on clarinet. This band is made up of mostly fifth graders who have advanced enough in their music study to handle more complex pieces than they typically play in school bands.


He practiced his butt off and did a great job. As an unexpected bonus, one of the five pieces they performed was one of John's favorite Wii Rock Band songs, "Eye of the Tiger."


Here he is:





Peter performed with the Symphonic Band for the third year. He had a real shot at Jazz Band this year, which takes only four alto saxes, but broke his finger a few days before the audition. He also missed the Symphonic Band audition, but the directors held a spot for him anyway since they knew what he could do. He'll try again next year for a high position in Symphonic and maybe a spot in Jazz. John will audition, too.


The video is the band's performance of "Atop a Scottish Highland," a medley of Scottish songs. You can only see about half of Peter's face in the video -- wait until the end when the conductor introduces each section for a quick view of his full face.

We're very proud of both our boys.

Another Reason Cancer Sucks

My sabbatical last fall was great for me professionally, and in some ways, personally. But in others, not so much. I had too much unstructured time, and I fell into some bad habits. I put on some weight, and my cholesterol went up past 200. The rise in cholesterol made me angry -- it's always been very good.


So I've changed some habits, and I've been doing better. I get my cholesterol re-tested in a month or so, and I've lost about 12 pounds -- enough that it's starting to show.


But here's the problem -- no one can tell me that.

I mean, who's going to say to a cancer patient, "Hey -- are you losing weight?" What kind of a jerk does that?

I have to enjoy my looser pants all on my own.....

More From Strudel

So Cancer Boy is all happy yesterday. I don't know why. He says the Markets lost. I ask him, why so happy? You mean the stocks markets? Don't that make you sad?

People care about these things.

Cancer Boy says, No, the Markets. My brother der Hockey Man is crying.

I don't understand.

Is basketball, he says.

I still don't understand.

But it make Cancer Boy happy, so i get belly rubs. So what do I care about the Markets?

Then today, Cancer Boy is sad again. He says Looey Vull lost, too. I don't know who Looey is, so i don't bother asking. that just make ME sad, like when by bone went under the couch and I couldn't reach it and Cancer Boy just sit there with his computer laughing at der You Toob. So I don't even ask who Looey Vull is and whats he lost.

I hear Cancer Boy talking to The Nice Lady, telling her the Markets lost and so did Looey, but Mary Land won. Again, I don't bother asking. He tells Nice Lady that he hoped the Markets lost so he could laugh at his brother.

People emotions are so complicated.

Then i go online and I think i see what is going on.

Cancer Boy and Hockey Man both so stupids. Every body knows who is going to win. The Georgia Bulldogs or the UConn Huskies. Don't you dare say the Kentucky cats! I'll bit you. BIT YOU!!

What the Markets and Looey both need is a "inside presence." I'll calls my friend. He'll help them both.

Losers.

From Strudel

It's been a while since Strudel has been a guest blogger, but she's been online a lot lately (still mad that we won't let her have her own Facebook page), and she has a video she wants to share with you.

As always, I've done only mininal editing. If I try to change what she has written, she gets upset and threatens to post nasty comments.

##################################

Hello Good Peoples.

Cancer Boy says I only can post two things: either goods, happy things, or things about cancers. So I do both.

See? I can do both. Cancer Boy says I get too angry sometimes. Know what makes me angry? Cats. And dogs that pee in my yard. Is MY YARD!!! He Dame! Das ist nicht Ihr Hof!

But, no, no. I am not angry. The dogs are not in my yard now.

I show you video, yes?

Is a cancer video. Living strong. I say to Cancer Boy, this is a Nodes of Gold, yes? But no -- is not lymphoma man in video. Is other cancer.

But what is so great about video man? He loves his dogs. You watch der video, don't care about the man -- watch the dogs! Beautiful dogs!

They work hard, yes? They don't look like German dogs to me, but maybe. If I could get closer and get just a little sniff, then I could tell you for sures. From the back, from what I see? I say, maybe Finland. Canada. Someplace cold.

So you remember -- watch the dogs.

Here's the nice video.

And if you are a dogs, you stay off my lawn! Ich werde Sie nicht töten, aber Sie werden lustig nachher laufen.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I'm giving you this a day early to help you get into the mood.

We celebrated a little early, too, going to a St. Patty's day dinner on Saturday night with the kids. (Which won't stop me from eating more corned beef tomorrow, of course.) The "Everyone Loves an Irish Italian Boy" t-shirt from my brother was a hit with my mixed-marriage friends.

To celebrate the day, please watch a clip from Conan O'Brien, in which he goes to Chinatown in NYC to try to drum up some enthusiasm for St. Patrick's Day. Amusing stuff. And more appropriate that the Family Guy clip I was considering.

As a bonus, you'll also find, at the end of the video, a link to the clip of Conan going apple picking with lymphoma survivor Mr. T. How great is that?

And remember to be careful about your wardrobe -- in Ireland on St. Patrick's Day, you're allowed to pinch anyone who isn't wearing green.