With the caveat that I cannot see what you see, I'd guess that sounds like canker.
You need to cut the canes all the way to the bottom -- or to healthy tissue.
FWIW, some people tell me that they stopped it by spraying with pure Listerine.
If it is, as I understand, bacterial in nature, that does seem to make some sense.

Jeri

it sounds like you have many things going on, but i don't think everything is connected to the same "problem". much of the brown striped canes are usually older, thicker canes that have weathered canker. canker is usually active when the weather is cold and wet, early spring. the leaves turning yellow and falling off is probably one or a combination of heat, or nitrogen stealing from the lower leaves to supply the upper new growth. If you spray once a week you have to be careful and not burn your foliage if it gets too hot. If you keep slashing away at your roses with the knife, they won't have enough foliage to make nutrients. The big question is, how much new growth are they putting out? If they are making new growth, i would think they are doing fine. If the canker was active, they would have dieback, and i don't believe you mentioned any dieback, but if they were doing that you would need to cut them back a ways before the dead area. the brown you are seeing inside the canes is normal caused from old age, from whence the term woodiness comes from. and eventually when they become too old and woody they will not produce many leaves or flowers.

Thanks for your input. The browned canes were producing very well this spring. But now they appear to be losing leaves. I spray only in the early morning before it gets hot. Some of the canes appear to even split open. I cut out alot of them yesterday being careful to wipe pruners with alcohol. They all have good green canes as well. Just perplexing when I had such a great first flush of roses. Thanks again