Losing the rest of my hair

I was just getting used to the way I look with a shaved head a la Demi Moore in G.I. Jane and deciding it wasn't so bad when this morning in the shower I noticed little shreds of 1/4" long hair on my hand. It appears even the stubble is falling out and soon I will be smoothly bald , more like Persis Khambatta in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. (Although they both had eyebrows.) A friend recommended using duct tape to remove the tiny hairs and prevent scalp itch. We'll see.

For now I have decided not to post any photos online of me in the wig or a scarf or bald. I am comfortable wearing a scarf in public although I get many double-takes from strangers, even in medical buildings. You'd think people had never since a female cancer patient before.

Most people at synagogue who know me have avoided commenting that I've lost my hair and focus on how cute the scarf looks. That's a bit strange, kind of like stepping on the step that isn't there. You think it is, so your foot comes down extra hard on the ground. Only two people have actually said anything to me about losing my hair.

I'm not complaining: I think it's easier to focus on the positive of the terrific scarf rather than the negative of losing hair to chemo. And I don't want to have the "pity party" conversation repeatedly every time I see someone for the first time.

Still, it's strange to not have the hair loss acknowledged.

PICC Line Cover Up in Public

Friday I get a PICC line inserted for my next round of chemo. D and I have been sitting here brainstorming on what I can use as a cover my PICC line up in public. With my last PICC line, I noticed some people staring at my left arm on warm days with a t-shirt on.

My PICC will be between my elbow and shoulder and I’m looking to cover up just the silicone tubing and colored IV part. 

Any ideas out there?

Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals

The newness.

1. Drie Fontinen Schaerbeekse Kriek (bottled Oct. 2008)
2. Howe Sound Bailout Bitter(1 Liter)
3. Howe Sound Nut Brown Ale (1 Liter)
4. Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast
5. Mikkeller Black
6. Lucifer Glasses (beautiful goblet-style with a heavy, thick base)


cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Relay For Life

From the their website ...

Join the biggest Cancer event to make the biggest difference

Canadian Cancer Society Relay For Life gives you and your community the opportunity to celebrate cancer survivors, remember and honor loved ones lost to cancer and fight back against all cancers.

Event Details:

Edmonton's Relay for Life 

May 29, 2010 

7 p.m. - 7 a.m.

University of Alberta Foote Field

Edmonton, Alberta

US Patent: Isolation and use of solid tumor stem cells

Isolation and use of solid tumor stem cells, United States Patent 7,713,710. [FreePatentsOnline][PatentStorm].
Publication Date: May 11, 2010.
Inventors: Clarke; Michael F. (Ann Arbor, MI), Morrison; Sean J. (Ann Arbor, MI), Wicha; Max S. (Ann Arbor, MI), Al-Hajj; Muhammad (Ann Arbor, MI).
Assignee: The Regents of the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI) .
Appl. No.: 11/753,191
Filed: May 24, 2007
Abstract:

A small percentage of cells within an established tumor have the properties of stem cells. These solid tumor stem cells give rise both to more tumor stem cells and to the majority of cells in the tumor that have lost the capacity for extensive proliferation and the ability to give rise to new tumors. The solid tumor heterogeneity reflects the presence of tumor cell progeny arising from a solid tumor stem cell. This discovery is the basis for solid tumor stem cell compositions, methods for distinguishing functionally different populations of tumor cells, methods for using these tumor cell populations for studying the effects of therapeutic agents on tumor growth, and methods for identifying and testing novel anti-cancer therapies directed to solid tumor stem cells.

Parent Case Text:

CLAIM OF PRIORITY
This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/150,073, filed Jun. 10, 2005, which is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/920,517, filed Aug. 1, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,984,522, which claims priority to U.S. provisional applications Ser. No. 60/222,794, filed Aug. 3, 2000, and Ser. No. 60/240,317, filed Oct. 13, 2000, all of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entireties.

Google patents entry for Application Number 11/753,191 (The application that led to patent 7,713,710. The filing date was 24 May 2007).

Google patents entry for Application Number 11/150,073 (See Parent Case Text above: the filing date was 10 June 2005).

Google patents entry for Patent Number 6,984.522 (See Parent Case Text above: the filing date was 1 August, 2001 and the issue date was 10 Jan 2006). [FreePatentsOnline][PatentStorm].

Comment:

Not mentioned in the Parent Case Text above is United States Patent 7,115,360. [FreePatentsOnline][PatentStorm]. This patent was issued October 3, 2006 and filed on August 2, 2001.

The Parent Case Text for patent 7,115,360:

CLAIM OF PRIORITY
This patent is the United States national stage of PCT patent application PCT/US01/24243, published Feb. 14, 2002 as WO 02/12447, which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 09/920,517, filed Aug. 1, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,984,522. This patent also claims priority to provisional patent applications U.S. Ser. Nos. 60/222,794, filed Aug. 3, 2000, and 60/240,317, Oct. 13, 2000.

Information about this patent was found via a Google search for "Isolation and use of solid tumor stem cells".

Chemo Monday

Everything went more smoothly this time, although still with delays. My counts were back up. The charge nurse didn't tell my nurse that the orders were in the electronic system. Dr. G was getting a haircut out of the office so couldn't sign the order electronically to give the chemo until he returned. Then the pharmacy was backed up.

I did not have either compazine or reglan, the yucky pre-meds that caused my anxiety attacks on the previous two visits. The zofran I received went like a breeze. Rik and I played most of a round of Scrabble to pass the time.

We even stopped at the grocery store on the way home to get some fresh Alaskan king salmon for dinner. Yummy!

My New Camera

Well… now that the nice weather is here, I’m finding some relaxing moments by going to the various parks around town to just sit and take in whatever is going on. To give me something to do, I take my camera with me. I always try and look for some landmarks, nature or scenery to photograph.

What makes all this more interesting is my new camera. It’s got a through the lens viewfinder that allows me to easily see what I’m trying to shoot. Now I can take pictures in any type of light instead of me trying to shade the screen on my old camera. This feature is way cool. Now I just use the back screen for reviewing.

Then I head home and downloaded the pics on to my laptop. I must say, about one in 20 is actually a pretty good photo. I’m thinking about joining a camera club on the internet … we’ll see.