The Weight of The Wait

I've been waiting to learn the results of a biopsy of a lump discovered in my breast.

Normally, I'm not so bothered to wait for test results, but this situation is different. Partly because finding a lump was so accidental, but also with Roni's cancer, Michelle's cancer, Roni's recurrence and what is likely a recurrence of breast cancer in an aunt....all inside 13 months...

I really think it's benign, but I'd feel better if I had a little science to back that up! I am feeling the weight of waiting.

I know that I haven't been myself...now you know why.
Wait! Put down the phone...this isn't a call to rally. I don't want to be rallied. The logical Chris reminds me that almost everything is nothing; that there's no use worrying unless there's definitely something to worry about; that testing faith proves endurance. I said the other day, "I've got a compost heap of variations on It all works out in the end. The question is, when does it end?"

The biopsy was Nov 20. I've had some difficulty scheduling a follow up appointment with the specialist to review the results. His assistant finally agreed to pull my chart, ensure the pathology report was read by the doctor, and then contact me with an appointment time. The surgeon has only one day allocated for office visits before January.

I could guess the news of the report based on when he would see me.

Assistant: Christine? The doctor will see you on his first day back in the new year.
Me: OK. So it's not urgent then.
Assistant: I can't say that.
Me: Well if it was urgent, he'd see me next week, right?
Assistant: No, we're double and triple booked that day already. We just can't see any other patients before he breaks for the holiday.
Me: He's reviewed the report?
Assistant: No, we haven't located the report.
Me: What are you actively doing to locate the report?
Assistant: We're doing what we can.
Me: When you find the report, please fax me a copy.
Assistant: That's highly unusual. We follow up with patients in the office. {Pause} Then, What's your fax number.
Me: I'll get back to you with that.

If there's even a shred of 'suspicious' , 'inconclusive' or some other expression that's suggests any element of doubt in this report, I'm gonna have this guy's head!

The funny thing is that when the lump was detected, the doc's approach was, 'Well, it may be nothing, but given such a strong family history and since it will be some time before we can perform a biopsy, we should move forward with it so that there's no chance we'll be caught off guard.'

We were all impressed by this take-action approach.

The delay has seriously sapped my energy.

Looks like another Christmas without fudge, and Grinch trees all around.

I sent one card only (to Bridget) - and that's all that's going out.

You know we wish you Good Cheer! ... don't look for those wishes in your mailbox.

Too weary to tag this post.

Punctuation * In the Hall of Fame ?

George Mitchell released his report today on the use of steroids and human growth hormones in Major League Baseball. To nobody's surprise, Mitchell condemned MLB for ignoring the problem: 'The use of steroids in Major League Baseball was widespread. There was a collective failure to recognize the problem as it emerged and to deal with it early on.'

Among the baseball stars implicated in Mitchell's report are Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi. Both have previously been accused of steroid use in The BALCO Affair.

Mitchell's report points to steroid use by future hall-of-famer Roger Clemens. Clemens denied using steroids when his name surfaced in other investigations, but Mitchell dedicates 8 pages to Clemens.

Clemens always struck me as a guy with integrity. A 7-time Cy Young winner, he's been called 'the world's best living pitcher' and named to the All-Century Team. He was a shoo-in to baseball's Hall of Fame on the first try. His Foundation supports athletics for youth in Houston.

According to Mitchell's report, every MLB team has had at least one player involved with performance enhancing drugs during the decades he investigated. The list of players includes as many superstars as average players.
Forget about marking Bonds' home run record with an asterisk...hall of fame nominations of any player who was active from, say 1987-2004, might have to be marked with a question mark.

Except Cal Ripken Jr.

Tags: [Mitchell Report]  [Baseball's Steroid Era]  [BALCO]
[George Mitchell]  [Bud Selig]
[Roger Clemens]  [Barry Bonds]  [Cal Ripken Jr.]  [Jose Canseco]

Interesting: Jose Canseco was denied entrance to the press conference where Mitchell's report was unveiled. In his autobiography, Juiced, Canseco admits using steroids. He has reportedly inked a deal for a follow-up book, Vindicated.

From the Simply Obvious Laboratory

Dr. Patricia Sagaspe released the results of her recent study on sleep:

Naps Work Best to Overcome Sleepiness.

Dr. Sagaspe of the Clinique du Summeil in France studied 12 people between 20 and 25 years old and 12 people between 40 and 50.

Each drove 125 km alert and when sleepy. Subjects were either given a cup of coffee, a cup of decaf or a 30-minute nap before the second drive.

She found that drivers who had coffee or a nap were more alert. Young drivers performed best after a nap.

Eye-opening science!
What's up for tomorrow? Food Satisfies Hunger?

[Dr. P. Sagaspe]  [Sleep Study]
[Driving When Tired]  [Naps]

China Overrun With Irony

Merchandisers for the Beijing Olympics 2008 are frustrated by the availability of unauthorized apparel and souvenirs being produced by merchandise pirates.

Authorities had investigated about 80 commercial and personal Web sites selling fake Olympic merchandise, or lacking licenses to sell the legitimate product. "The supply channels on these illegal Web sites are chaotic," Xie Funing, a spokesman with the Olympic E-commerce Operation Centre, was quoted to say.

The Global Congress on Combating Counterfeiting and Piracy, called the illicit trade "a global epidemic reaching a scale now too great for individual governments, industry sectors or companies to solve."

China is the largest supplier of counterfeited merchandise worldwide. It is estimated to cost legitimate manufacturers $50 billion in sales.


Tags: [Beijing 2008]   [Fake Merchandise]   [China]
[Global Congress on Combating Counterfeiting]

And Then There Were Three...

Today, Australia voted to ratify the Kyoto Protocol to reduce emissions that impact climate change.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said 'the Federal Government would do everything in its power to help Australia meet its Kyoto obligations, including setting a target to reduce emissions by 60 per cent on 2000 levels by 2050.'    more...

The Kyoto Protocol was introduced in 1997. The objective of the international framework is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would reduce future impact on climate change. The protocol has been ratified by 175 countries.

The United States, China and India still have not signed on. They are the #1, #2 and #4 worst polluters (respectively).

A conference opened today in Bali for countries to discuss the next phase of emission targets.

Tags: [Kyoto Protocol]    [Prime Minister Kevin Rudd]   [Australia]
[Climate Change]   [Greenhouse Gas Emissions]   [Bali Conference]