Today at the PMC amusement park:

Mark had a very restless night last night with discomfort from the ever building ascietes. Lynette was really wanting some help from the docs there today in the form a synthesis ( fluid drain) which would relieve pressure inside the belly.

Lynette needed to go to work today and so I was on duty and my assignment from the mom was to get the docs to get the synthesis done!

First I had to wait for the surgeon who performed Mark's exploratory surgery a week ago. When he came in he was somewhat in agreement that it might make sense to get Mark into radiology where they could perform a "guided synthesis" much the same as they did 2 weeks back.

Next came in the senior resident doc who has been in charge of Mark's care in the surgery pod. She felt strongly that a synthesis was not advisable with a post operative patient as there was an increased risk for Peritonitis this soon after surgery and that a synthesis should be a last option procedure. Instead she prescribed an infusion of laesiks which was tried recently unsuccessfully and actually contributed to his false diagnosis, (Burkitt's Lymphoma) due to his elevated uremic count. Laesiks is a diuretic and it's function is in part, what raised that uremic count that so concerned the oncologists.

James and I pointed out to the resident doc that that had not been successful and she said that this time they would also infuse albumin which as I understand it, causes the kydneys to absorb the ascietes and excrete them through the urine.

Then another doctor came into the consult; he is a hematologist/pathologist and he concured that a synthesis would be highly risky and that the laesiks would be a more safe procedure and that if that treatment does not work, then as a last resort, they would do the synthesis.

*Next the doctor said that the PMC pathologists have ruled out any malignancies base on the exploratory biopsies and the lymph biopsies.

NO MALIGNANT CELLS FOUND!!!!!!!!!!!

The surgeon stated that the colon walls were like a "thick rubber hose" which was not elastic enough to perform properly and that inside wall of the colon was highly constricted. This results in partial or complete blockages. This explains the green bile "Bilious Vomitis" Mark has been suffering from.

So now again we want to know, "How do you fix this?" This question is still premature as they have sent the slides to Dr. Cheryl Coffin, ( unfortunate name) who until April 2008 was the chief of pathology at PMC and is now at Vanderbilt University. She has become a renowned authority on smooth tumor and spindle cell anomalies having authored research papers and a book on the subjects. PMC is awaiting her report at the end of this week (hopefully) before developing a treatment protocol.

Once again thank you, all of you for your prayers, financial and spiritual help. Pray for Marky's Miracle.

Ken Crocheron