I really do like the snow more than rain these days. It was so lovely being cold and a bit below freezing. Less people on the roads as most people here just won't drive in it. But then it was getting a bit old and I was wishing for the rain to melt it all away. And Boy, the rain sure did come and in about 3 days melted all the snow away and just kept on raining. And then, it started to rain IN MY HOUSE! Umm ya... so much for the roof they put on this house just over 3 years ago just before we bought it. There's a leak coming through the celing in our living room so when you open the door to come in, you have to step over a bucket! Argh! I phoned the people that reno'd this whole house to get info on the warranty on the roof and they said there isn't any. Too bad for me. I shouldn't even phone to ask as it would be like him asking for me to pay him money because he could sell my house again today for more money. Seriously, that was his rationale. I HATE crooked contractors. If you live locally here in BC, ask me for the name of these guys before you do any reno's. The list of poor workmanship goes on and on and I would be pleased to advise everyone I can come in contact with to NEVER give them any money. Oh, and they are a member of the BBB if you can believe it with only one complaint against them. So, the GOOD contractor we know that did our basement is coming tomorrow to have a look at where the water has found it's way in and help us fix it. What a day.

Photo of the damage so far
2007-01-23 21:24:33

Here's the bubble of paint that formed on the ceiling. Tod punched a hole into it so the water would stop spreading all over the place. Little did we know how much water was in there! It too ages for the water to stop draining. It was a bit scary!

I just wanted to let any readers know that I am doing these postings as a benefit to anyone that wants to know about what I'm finding in the research world of MS. But its a big benefit to me so that I know I'm contributing to knowing all I should and be the best patient I can be living with MS. I've been getting requests as of late from people wanting me to give them info on how to sign up for trials or get more info on certain topics. My postings are found through news releases, so I'm not an expert in these drugs. But, here are my thoughts I can offer you... -If I wanted more info on a trial drug I would phone my MS clinic to inquire about that particular one. If I wanted to be a part of that trial it would have to be through a reputable clinic anyways or the clinic might know of another drug that might benefit you more. The clinical trials area of an MS clinic are a good resource. -If I couldn't find info there, I would google the company name that makes that trial drug and contact that company directly. I would guess that if they were actively recruiting and received an active inquiry from you, they would respond. Otherwise, I'm sorry that I can't help you any further. I try to put as much time as life will allow into my blog and sometimes time and energy are short :) But if your a part of a trial and would like others to know your experience, by all means send me a blurb that I can post and hopefully others will benefit from that.

I had to laugh when I read that title of this news release! Parasites? This report says that although medicine has figured out how to kill off all those nasty parasites, some of them seem to be beneficial to us MS'ers. So, can they make a new drug with bugs and inject me with them to slow my MS? Ha! I guess time will tell. "A prolonged bout of intestinal parasites seems to slow the decline of patients with multiple sclerosis, according to a study released today. The results suggest that immune-modulating molecules from parasites could be developed into drugs to ease autoimmune diseases, and that by conquering parasite infections, modern medicine may have inadvertently increased our vulnerability to these illnesses."

The FDA just approved this trial drug for secondary progressive MS to move forward to new phase III trials in the US. I didn't know this drug was an IV drug like Tysabri. This one given every 6 months though. Interesting. " The pivotal phase III clinical trial in the US, named MAESTRO-03 (A Double-blind, Placebo Controlled Multi-center Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of MBP8298 in subjects with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis), will be evaluating MBP8298 for the treatment of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). The trial is a randomized, double-blind study enrolling approximately 510 patients who will be administered either MBP8298 or placebo intravenously every six months for a period of two years. The primary clinical endpoint for the trial is defined as a statistically and clinically significant increase in the time to progression of the disease as measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), in patients with HLA-DR2 and/or HLA-DR4 immune response genes (up to 75% of all MS patients are HLA-DR2 and/or HLA-DR4 positive)."