Mr. Mark was able to leave Bangkok within hours of the tanks surrounding Bangkok and take a flight to Chang Mai. Jin, who looks after him, found a place to stay and this was his big chance. Mark is trying to see everything and everyone he can in case his cancer gets ahead of his treatment and all your prayers and any miracles that might occur.
Mark's sister Stephanie is flying to Thailand from Japan and is due there tomorrow. Through the American Embassy, as a department of defense employee, she can ship some of Mark's belongings to Texas in preparation for his closing out the condo and coming home.
Few minutes past midnight Wednesday Sept. 27, 2006
Talked with Mark in Bangkok for a few minutes (midnight in Austin and 12 noon in Thailand) and he was on his way to get radiation to his chest wall cancer. This involves having some sort of mold made at 200 dollars and 15 treatments at 75 dollars each for about a total of about 1300 dollars. He is concerned that cancer has invaded bone and there may be other cancer locations in bone. Mark is concerned he will not have as good an access to care in Texas as he has in Bangkok where he sees the doctors frequently and is only a 50 cent taxi ride away from his doctors, but on the other hand he is concerned that he not wait too long to leave Bangkok and get so sick he ends up in intensive care with a huge bill there that has to be paid immediately. Stay tuned for more information.