LIVING WITH MCL

Why does the mere thought of using [table] salt make most people cringe? Salt isn't a problem. Sodium is, and you're right, there is some sodium in salt ( approximately 39% ), but that doesn't make it bad. Too much may. Of course too much of anything can cause problems. Besides, sodium is essential for human nutrition. It is used to transmit nerve impulses, and is found in every cell of your body. Most importantly, salt imparts great flavors to food, when used in the proper proportions. So you would think, at the very least, such highly rated chefs would not hesitate to use it in their food. One can only wish. Went out to dinner last night at Michaels on Naples . A very highly acclaimed Italian restaurant in Long Beach. At least you would think so by the price. I just wasn't impressed, and I'm not sure whether I'd go back. While Edie's dish, spaghetti with lobster, had some noticeable flavors, my lobster risotto was as bland as could be. Granted the risotto ...

November 3rd marks the end of daylight savings time ends. The clocks get turned back an hour, and daybreak comes an hour earlier. I just hope I can make it that long. There's still 14 days to go. The last couple of weeks have been particularly difficult. All I seem to want to do is sleep. 6 o'clock comes around, and it's still dark outside. So I turn over, bury my head in the pillow, and go right back to sleep. That's never my plan when I go to bed the night before, but it always seems to work out that way. And it doesn't seem to matter what time I go to bed either. Then on top of everything else, my nose started bleeding this morning. I haven't had a nose bleed in over 3 years, but whenever I do get one, I can't help but think back to 4 years ago when I had to get my nose cauterized and 12 years ago when I had to go to the emergency room. Fortunately this latest episode wasn't that severe, and I was able to get it stopped relatively quickly. [And won...

Or it's about to be anyways. It was 48.7ºF when I woke up this morning. That's not as cold as it can get during the coldest months of winter, but it is getting down there. It's also a lot lower than it has been over the past several weeks, and a sure sign winter is upon us. The question is whether I'm happy about it or not? Of course I'm not happy about it. I much prefer the summer months with their mostly balmy temperatures and longer days, but there are some things to be said for the winter months. For one, sleeping is much more comfortable. I always get my best nights sleep during the winter months. And............ OK, so that's the only good thing I can think of about winter, except maybe it makes me appreciate summer more. Oh well, I guess there's not much I can do about it (moving to the southern hemisphere is out of the question), except try and endure, and relish in the fact winters in southern California aren't really that bad!

I've always considered the t(11;14) translocation as the defining marker for Mantle Cell Lymphoma (MCL). If that translocation presents itself, there is a very high probability you have MCL, but the more I read, the less I am convinced of that argument being so set in stone. Why can't my diagnosis of atypical MCL just as easily be an atypical variant of Splenic Marginal Zone Lyphoma (SMZL)? Sure, I have the t(11;14) translocation, but when all the other factors are considered, I believe I'm a more likely fit for atypical SMZL. From Lymphomation.org Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma is an indolent (slow growing) b-cell lymphoma. It typically presents with an enlarged spleen (splenomegaly). "Splenic lymphomas present with a massive splenomegaly (enlarged spleen) sometimes with mesenteric lymph nodes or hepatic involvement, but without peripheral lymph nodes; bone marrow and blood are often involved." With the exception of mesenteric lymph nodes , and hepatic involvemen...