Darrell Sapp, Post-Gazette People sign a banner reading "Our Prayers Are With You Mayor Bob O'Connor" at the City-County Building, Downtown, yesterday. Click photo for larger image.

Mayor Bob O'Connor will have a planned break this weekend from radiation treatments for brain cancer, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center said yesterday.

For the past five days, the mayor has had daily 20-minute doses of intensity-modulated radiation therapy, said UPMC spokeswoman Clare Collins. IMRT allows doctors to target radiation toward cancerous areas and away from healthy tissues.

She said the treatment also involves image-guided radiation therapy, which allows doctors to make last-minute adjustments to ensure that the radiation beam is focused on targeted areas.

In a statement, his medical team said yesterday that the therapy has been well-tolerated and the mayor has not suffered side effects.

Mr. O'Connor will follow a similar course of therapy for at least the next two weeks, Ms. Collins said.

A brain scan would be needed to determine if the mayor's brain tumors are shrinking in response to the treatment, she said, noting there are no current plans to conduct the testing until he nears the end of his radiation therapy.

Darrell Sapp, Post-Gazette Jeanne Caliguiri, left, widow of the late Mayor Richard Caliguiri, and Evelyn Korb bag 200 bracelets supporting Mayor Bob O'Connor for Gary Van Horn to take back to work at Images Pittsburgh yesterday. All 2,500 of the bracelets available at the City-County Building, Downtown, were sold by 12:30 in the afternoon. Click photo for larger image.

She said the mayor's symptoms, such as headaches and lethargy, have improved since he began radiation treatments Aug. 17. So far, he has had five doses of IMRT and two of whole-brain radiation.

A shunt continues to channel excess fluid from his brain, and doctors have not redirected it from outside his body into his abdomen, Ms. Collins said. The fluid levels have continued to fluctuate, and they need to be more stable before the shunt can be redirected internally, she said.

As the mayor continued his battle against primary central nervous system T-cell lymphoma yesterday, the outpouring of support for his recovery remained strong.

In less than a day, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society sold a second batch of 5,000 wristbands at seven locations around the city, according to Maureen Durkin, the organization's spokeswoman.

Between 6 and 9 a.m., patrons at one of the mayor's favorite hangouts, Coffee Tree Roasters in Squirrel Hill, had purchased 700 of the black-and-gold rubber bracelets. They name The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, which benefits from the sales, and bear the inscription, "Everybody's Mayor ... Bob O'Connor."

Another O'Connor haunt, Vento's Pizza in East Liberty, sold 600 bracelets by 11:15 a.m., before the lunch rush arrived. Five minutes later, gift shops at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center and UPMC Shadyside had sold all 300 they were given.

While a cadre of lunch-goers gathered to sign a "Get Well" banner outside the City-County Building, others scooped up all 2,500 of the $2 bracelets by 12:30 p.m. and folks were asking for more.

A Pleasant Present, located in Squirrel Hill, also sold about 400. Merante's Gifts, in Bloomfield, sold all but 30 wristbands out of 500.

Ms. Durkin said she fielded calls from people wanting the bracelets in Indiana, Westmoreland, Butler, Beaver and Washington counties. She said she plans to order more, but warned that it could take a week to fill the orders.