sandrakclev

Aren't dogs wonderful!? I would recommend a dog that is at least two years old, simply because it can take that long to outgrow puppy behaviors! Check the ads in the paper - many people have to find a new home for a wonderful pet due to the onset of allergies or because they have to move and are unable to take Fido with them. Also, your local human society could be a big help in finding just the right dog; they usually know many of the dogs' personalities. As for the potty training issue - try installing a doorbell INSIDE the house down near the floor (at paw level). Each time you take dog outside, push the bell with his paw and immediately open the door. He will make the connection in no time and will "ring" to go out. No more mixed signals! Good luck! Sandra

My father went to Baylor University for the G-Vax trial. There are a lot of hoops to jump through, as you can imagine, but he was finally selected for the study. In his case, they removed fluid from the lung to harvest the cancer cells for the vaccine - this method is not as successful, but it can be done in some cases. However, we later found out that the fluid had no cancer cells (it had early on in the treatment), so they were unable to make the vaccine. This sounds like a very promising possibility, so I encourage people to try it. In his study, 75 people were selected and they get over 300 applications a day - but get your doctor involved in getting you in - it could make the difference. Whatever happens, I encourage anybody to keep on track of what goes on - the sad part is that my dad had to stop chemo treatments during the time he was being tested to see if he qualified for the study - about two months until the fluid was harvested, and they didn't let him know that he was ineligible until he finally called to find out what was going on with his vaccine. Even then, he couldn't find out anything. Finally, his doctor called and insisted on talking to someone whe knew what was going on and was told he had been excluded from the study. His doctor was furious; as everyone knows, every day without treatment counts. So please explore every avenue, but be sure to look out for yourself while you do!

My father just started on Iressa - he was told ahead of time that skin irritation was a common side effect. When he mentioned to his doctor that he had some rash starting, she exclaimed "Good!". Evidently, there is a correlation between the rash and the effectiveness of the treatment - the more rash, the better for some people.