Daifung vs. The Brain Invaders

Victoria Park and the Central Library

Hello all. Today I will start my 7th cycle of chemo. After some extended discussions, the oncologists have agreed to follow the protocol used at Duke and I will have at least 6 more cycles, for a total of 12. That will cover me through the rest of the year. I have another MRI in early August and hopefully it will continue to show positive signs, meaning that all the treatment has been worth it. The doctors also don’t think that the delay in starting my next cycle will have any adverse affects.

Black Kite

The weather today is pretty crummy, hot and humid with terrible visibility. I guess it’s not a bad time to be stuck in bed. The week-end was really nice though, with clear-blue skies if a bit hot. Nicole and I went with her mum to Cheng Chau, a small island that is mostly beach and fishing villages, on Sunday and that was fun. I also took advantage of the weather on Friday afternoon and Saturday to take a lot of photos around Hong Kong.

View from our window

I hope you are all well and enjoying the summer. Take care.

-Ted

A’s vs. Angels at the (former) Coliseum

Hello all. Nicole and I are in San Francisco now, enjoying the last few days of our California visit while somewhat dreading the return to Hong Kong (at least I am, since I start the next chemo cycle very soon). We’ve had a great time so far and Nicole has seen a nice cross-section of the Bay Area. Over the week-end we had Mexican food in Alameda and went to an A’s game (which we lost, damn!). After the game, Duncan and Alison hosted an excellent BBQ with about 25 folks, some of whom I hadn’t seen in around 10 years (or more). Thanks Duncan and Alison!

Monday followed with a busy day going to see Redwoods in Big Basin, eating burritos and checking out the surfers (and eating blackberries) in Santa Cruz, driving up RT 1 to enjoy the coastline before bowling at Sea Bowl and closing out the day with great Cantonese food at Koi Palace in Daly City.

Mother of the Forest @ Big Basin

Surfers at West Cliff, Santa Cruz

Yesterday we checked-in to the Marriott at Fisherman’s Wharf where we will close out the trip. We went full-on tourist, having chowder and funnel cake at the wharf after having visited Coit Tower. The weather was great and the bay views from the top of the tower were pretty stunning.

San Francisco from Coit Tower

That’s it for now. We have a busy day ahead and want to make the most of our remaining time in the USA. Thanks to all those who have shown me so much support over the last many months and especially these last few days. Your support along with the good news from Duke has really revitalized me going into the next round of treatment.

-Ted

The Ohio River and the Town of Marietta from the Williamstown Bridge

Well, today marks the end of my visit with my parents in Ohio. It’s been a great trip, very relaxing and damn fun as well.

This week we my Aunt, Uncle and Cousin came from Boston and NYC to visit, and we all went to Serpent Mound, an ancient Native American ceremonial mound built by the Hopewell culture. The mound is in the form of a long, undulating serpent, with the coils pointing towards the various points in the solar cycle (equinoxes, etc.).

In addition to Serpent Mound, we also visited Ash Cave near Athens Ohio. Ash Cave dominates my childhood memories of visiting Ohio and is a huge over-hang cave with a waterfall falling into the center. It is quite beautiful, especially in winter when the bottom of the waterfall becomes a huge ice stalagmite. Of course, it being summer there was no ice, but the lush surrounding valley was pretty special on it’s own.

After that, we just wandered around town taking pictures of interesting houses, the river and my Dad’s shop (yes, that’s an igloo dog-house on the sign).

North Pole Gunsmithing

We also went to my mother’s Rotary Club meeting, where she received an award. They also (much to my surprise) presented me with an award for perseverance and for remaining positive through my current situation. I don’t know that I deserved any awards, but my mom certainly does for all the work she does for the kids in town.

Well, that wraps up the mid-west branch of our trip. It’s been a blast to be sure and with the exception of Nicole’s cut-throat Monopoly play it’s been all fun. Tomorrow we fly to San Francisco for a week with friends before I go back to the chemo routine.

Take care everyone.

-Ted

The Ely-Chapman Education Foundation Building in Marietta, OH

Greetings and happy 4th of July to everyone!

Nicole and I are having a restful time here at the family homestead in Ohio. The trip to Duke proved to be well worth it and quite confidence inspiring. We met with Dr. Friedman with no wait and he confirmed that given my age and condition he would not recommend surgery at this point. Removing the tumor would almost certainly cause me to loose the function of my right eye, and because my brain would still be trying to create an image from both eye’s, reading and other activities would likely be very difficult for the rest of my life. Not very appealing.

After meeting with me, Dr. Friedman arranged for me to have a consult with Dr. Reardon who is one of the (or the?) head neuro-oncologists. He looked at my scans and had his PA interview me and run some basic neurological tests which all came out normal for me. Then he had his PA sit down with us and look at all my scans; even I as a layman could see the difference in the most recent scans. Dr. Reardon believes that the scans along with my general conditon are very positive and point to a good response to the chemo. He also said that the standard treatment plan at Duke is 12 cycles of Temozolomide followed by a PET scan. The PET scan would show metabolic activity in the tumor, and if there is any activity showing, they would continue the chemo. Once there is no metabolic activity, then I could stop the chemo. Aside from it being good news that the drugs appear to be working, the plan they follow confirms the next steps that my doctors in HK were planning. All in all positive news.

Nicole and I are now back at my parent’s home for a week before we head to the bay area. Yesterday we went to my mom’s foundation to tour the building and find out what they are up to, since
I hadn’t seen it in several years. The foundation is located in what was previously the town’s first high school. When my mom bought it 10 years ago it was in pretty bad shape, but she and the folks here have fixed it up and made it a community centerpiece. They provide programs for disadvantaged kids, helping to improve their basic math and English skills as well as educating them about regional history, Native American culture, ecology and conservation, as well as a wide variety of other topics. They also provide free meals to their students and run full-day programs during the summer as well as after-school programs during the school year. If all that isn’t enough, the building now also hosts a karate dojo, a boyscout troop, a garden project and a community theater program (which takes advantage of the gymnasium and full stage on the top floor of the building). It’s very impressive and I’m extremely proud of my mom and all the folks who make it possible.

Well, that’s it for today. We’re having a family BBQ this afternoon to celebrate the 4th and I need to get dressed and start getting ready. Have a happy 4th and be well.

-Ted