Hi all --

Well, the first act at least of the "show" is over -- Barry finished his radiation treatment at noon today, it was a very short one as just a boost and then only 2/3 of the field as 1/3 had been done Friday before the tomo-therapy machine went down. (It is still down, the guys are getting used to working on it until 3 am, then staggering home -- they think they've now have solved *the* problem but too late for us).

The only little wrinkle (well, two) was that the RO asked him to take the Ethyol again for the last three treatments as the radiation field isn't as tight with the older machine (and of course, that meant taking Anzemet and drinking 20 oz. water in 90 minutes, not easy to do with a sore throat) and also, after the first treatment Tuesday his neck got quite red, much redder than with the previous 30!. Why? Well, we read the "cautions" on the antibiotic he's taking for his staph infection and it clearly said if you are taking gadifloxin, "stay out of the sun as you will get sun-burned." OK, what's a linear accelerator but a giant photon source? It does seem to be fading already but I bet he will peel...

Barry says he will get on-line this weekend and give you his thoughts...right now we have to wait for the 2-month mark when they check things out. (RO says "no peeking" before then as it leads to false positives and a lot of anxiety for oncologist and patient.)

So I guess the next couple of months are the "second act."...

Gail