Yesterday it was time to go to KC for the results of Friday's tests.  It was our third trip to Kansas City in four days.  Despite the mild winter, the first time there was driving rain (the pun furnished by the cliche), the second time, when we picked up my old friend Frederic who had arrived from France, snow in the air, and the third a very thick fog.  We had to get up at 5:45 so that three of us could get ready to leave at 6:45 for the 8 a.m. appointment.  Dr. Van, as I've said, takes lots of time, so he's always running behind.  Luckily, we were the first of the morning, so he hadn't had a chance to fall behind.  The news was good: the tests showed that the cancer was generally stable.  The primary cancer in the kidney had grown a very small amount; if the growth continues, perhaps I'll have a simple ablation (burning away) of the growth, but generally for Stage IV kidney cancer, since it's already metastasized to other organs, doctors don't bother to remove the tumor or the kidney itself.  The spots in the bones haven't grown, and we'll now reduce the bone-strengthening shots from once a month to once every three months.  There are also spots on the spine and in the lungs, but they too haven't grown.  Looking over the doctor's shoulder, Mohamed could see on the computer that there are small growths on the spleen, gall bladder, and liver, but Dr. Van didn't mention those, and they evidently haven't increased either. It's always a relief to know that everything is stable, and I don't have to go back for six weeks.  Frederic thought the cancer center looked more like a hotel than a medical facilty and was amazed by the joking rapport with the nurse and scheduler.

One characteristic of a university hospital is that there are often interns (residents?) accompanying the physician.  I remember Joseph Heller complaining about this and saying that he'd never go to a training hospital again.  Dr. Templeton, who did the surgery on my femur, had an intern who was, I think, intimidated by her.  When he came alone, he was relaxed and made jokes; when she was with him, he was stiff and sober.  The only times I get impatient with the interns have been when they come before the doctor, ask me what seems like dozens of questions I've already answered, and then return with the physician to repeat the process.  There was an intern with Dr. Van yesterday, but he didn't say a word.  Since there were five of us in the small consultation room, maybe the atmosphere wasn't conducive for questioning, but I was glad I didn't have to feign interest in answering his questions.

It was only 9 a.m. when we finished.  We went to the Plaza and walked around a bit, but nothing was open except Starbuck's, so we had coffee.  Frederic, my French friend, had a croissant, which made him feel at home, and Mohamed had a pastry.  I couldn't eat, since I had just taken the chemotherapy pills, so I just drooled from the sidelines.  On the way home, we stopped at a giant Cabela's--not my favorite store, but I thought it would be interesting for Frederic.  He was duly impressed.  Frederic aime trainer   (he likes to take his time window shopping), and I think he must have looked at half of the thousands of fishing rods in the store, and he loved the aquarium and dioramas.  I worry that he came all this way and that we're not showing him a very lively time, so at least this was a good stop. 

I need to return to and complete my list of the four reasons I don't fear death.  Reason #4 is