Filed under: Breast Cancer , Cancer Survivors Photographs tell powerful stories. They depict people and objects and landscapes and emotions in deep, meaningful ways. They capture permanent visual representations of moments in life. They paint pictures that even the most well-crafted words could not reproduce. When Mary Ann Nilan was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004 at the age of 40, she knew her story must be told -- through pictures. So she asked a photographer to record it all, stating, "I hope the pictures make the road easier for other women." The rest is history. She calls it a photo essay and titles it The Diary of Healing . For 17 frames -- with photographs dominating each space and text kept to a minimum -- Nilan shares her journey that began with the discovery of breast cancer in both breasts and several lymph nodes, the journey that took her through chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, and reconstruction with implants. Her photographs document significant stops on her physical and emotional trek. They show her bald head, the wig she wore only once and then let hang on a hook, the scars that crossed her flat chest after surgery, an injection of saline that painfully pierced the skin of her new breasts, her children measuring her hair as it grows in after chemotherapy. The photographs are both hopeful and chilling. They are breast cancer. They are more than words could ever capture. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Childhood Cancers , Fundraisers , Products The kids at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital keep busy getting better. They keep busy making holiday gifts too -- like ornaments and ceramic plates and holiday cards and gift wrap. All of their hand-crafted creations fill the 2006 St. Jude Holiday Hope Gift Book , available now and jam-packed with powerful gifts of hope. Proceeds from gift purchases -- 84 percent of each sale -- benefit sick children in every community in every country who come to St. Jude for life-saving treatment. Like Caleb, a seven-year-old boy diagnosed in 2004 with leukemia. Caleb was referred to St. Jude -- where no family is ever turned away because of an inability to pay -- and received treatment for three years. Caleb is now in remission and expresses his feelings through his artwork. Anna Grace, a five-year-old who was abandoned on a roadside in China when she was one day old, was adopted by an American couple and soon after was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor on her brain stem. After surgery to remove the tumor, Anna Grace was referred to St. Jude for chemotherapy and radiation. Today, Anna Grace is healthy and only returns for check-ups every six months. St. Jude stories of hope are plentiful. And so are the kid-created holiday gifts offered this season. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Prevention , All Cancers , Environment , Diets , Stress Reduction , Exercise , Cancer prevention foods , Daily news

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Cancer Survivors Today marks the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And today, I realize how aware I am of breast cancer -- how much more aware I am than ever before, compliments of a personal encounter with a disease that snuck up on me with no warning and thrust me into a two-year battle that physically, has just ended. Emotionally, the trek continues. But it's not horrible and it's not disabling -- anymore. On most days, it's enlightening, empowering, strengthening. I think it's the brush with mortality that woke me up to the privileged life I live. Cancer allows me to wake in the morning feeling alive. It allows me to fall asleep at night feeling thankful. And every day, I am totally, completely, acutely aware of how absolutely lucky I am to be living. There was a time when October was nothing more than another month to me -- a month that stood out only for the onset of autumn and falling leaves and halloween and trick-or-treat. Now I know October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month -- the month belonging to millions of women living with breast cancer and the millions who need to prepare for a possible breast cancer strike. It's a powerful month, jam-packed with events and activities and promotions and media attention. It's a sad month, marking the loss of life for so many who could not conquer an evil disease. It's a happy month, symbolic of life that goes on despite this same evil disease. It's a month that allows me a lifetime membership. A month that will always be on my radar. A month I can call my own -- a month I am proud to call my own. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Cancer events , Research , Events , Politics , Opinion I love the terminology used by those behind the scenes at Hurricane Voices . This is where I first read the words breast cancer dancer and where individuals have gathered to advance the rebellion against breast cancer. The content on this site is powerful, edgy, and truly inspiring -- it incites public action. And it makes me want to jump up and do something -- now. To break down the barriers to progress in pursuit of the causes and cures for breast cancer -- which is the whole purpose of Hurricane Voices. Hurricane Voices began because of one woman -- Lois Egasti, a wife and mother living with metastatic breast cancer. Lois, who passed away on April 15, 2003, knew she was not alone and felt the need to take a stand against the disease. So she put her urge into action and formed this not-for-profit organization. And in just four years, a great community of voices emerged -- voices that have helped raise support and participation in far-reaching programs and events. Hurricane Voices offers on its website a family reading list, a regular newsletter, an empowering overview of breast cancer and its statistics, and a sampling of various myths surrounding beast cancer. Hurricane Voices provides direction for involvement in unique conferences -- such as When a Parent Has Cancer: Strengthening the School's Response which helps school systems support families affected by parental cancer and Breast Cancer: Truth & Consequences , a conference that challenges the status quo concerning breast cancer. Hurricane Voices initiates thought-provoking public awareness campaigns and strives to inform the public that the disease we call breast cancer is a very serious illness. Every day, more people are being diagnosed. Every day, more people are dying. Yet we are not beating this disease -- in fact in the time it takes to brush our teeth or drink a cup of coffee, another person has died of breast cancer. And this is what Hurricane Voices wants us to know. This and the fact that well-meaning, misconstrued survival rates in the 90 percentiles only extend for five years. And five years is just not enough. Powerful -- that's what Hurricane Voices is -- powerful. And each of us can contribute our own power to this organization by becoming a Hurricane Voice. So speak up -- by simply clicking here . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Celebrity spokesperson , Products , Cancer Caregivers , Cancer Survivors Sing for the Cure CD is a profound musical journey chronicling the experiences of women diagnosed with breast cancer. Narrated by Poet Laureate Dr. Maya Angelou, and featuring the performances of librettist Pamela Martin, the Turtle Creek Chorale and the Women's Chorus of Dallas, the CD offers original songs that capture the emotions of ten composers. The selections on the Sing for the Cure CD include Prelude For The Uncommon Woman; The Community's Voice; Who Will Speak?; Facing Diagnosis; Borrowed Time; The Partner's Voice; The Promise Lives On; Taking Control; Livin' Out Loud Blues; The Child's Voice; The Sister's Voice; Girl In The Mirror; The Mother's Voice; Who Will Curl My Daughter's Hair; Pursuing A Cure; Groundless Ground; Proclaiming Hope; One Voice: I Will Not Be Silent; Testimonial and Come To Me, Mother. Live concert performances of Sing for the Cure, dedicated to those affected by breast cancer, have been held in more than 50 US cities, including Carnegie Hall in New York City. The Sing for the Cure CD is available through the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation gift shop . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Brain Cancer , Daily news , Radiation Metastatic brain tumors -- tumors that spread from a cancer in another area of the body -- are among the worst tumors and will plague about 200,000 people in the United States every year. But once considered a death sentence, these brain tumors -- primarily those one centimeter in size or less -- can now be treated with a breakthrough radiation technique launched at the University of Florida College of Medicine. This new state-of-the-art radiosurgery device for noninvasive, outpatient treatment is more precise and more powerful than previous methods of treatment. Approved by the FDA in June, this Trilogy Tx system makes traditional surgery unnecessary for many patients. Dr. William Friedman, chairman for the department of neurosurgery at UF and one of two professors who developed and patented seven components of this system over the past 20 years, says, "I'm a surgeon, but if you can provide an outpatient, noninvasive treatment that requires no anesthesia, has extremely high cure rates, and very low complication rates, the question is: Why do surgery?"

Filed under: Lung Cancer , Prevention , All Cancers , Television , Smoking ABC World News Tonight partnered with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute and the North American Quitline Consortium to present a special series Quit to Live . According to statistics, approximately 440,000 Americans will die from smoking-related illnesses this year. A more encouraging statistic is while there are 46 million smokers, for the first time, there are more ex-smokers than smokers. The Quit to Live series is a comprehensive resource for the 70 percent of smokers who have indicated they are interested in quitting. At Quit to Live, you can watch the complete special series coverage in video broadcast reports ; watch broadcast plus exclusive web-only content ; view the videoblogs of Tracy, Jose, Meg and Alyce; how to quit thinking about quitting and compare different methods and find groups that can help. You can read ABC medical editor Dr. Tim Johnson and experts from the nation's leading cancer centers answers to questions about smoking at Ask Tim . In addition to original reports and reviewed resources, they offer community to connect with others. This week, ABC News revisited the Quit to Live special series on the anniversary of Peter Jennings death to lung cancer. Any smoker interested in quitting will find this special series of great value -- you might want to start by watching the video Expert Interview on How to Quit . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Pancreatic Cancer , Celebrity cancer diagnosis , Celebrity spokesperson , All Cancers , Events Apple CEO Steve Jobs delivered a commencement speech at Stanford University on June 12, 2005. It was about following curiosity and intuition, about looking back and connecting the dots in life, about beginnings and endings, about death. Jobs, a survivor of pancreatic cancer, knows a thing or two about facing death. And the words he chose to relate his life-threatening experience to a crowd full of hopeful graduates are powerful and inspiring. I could paraphrase his message -- but surely something would be lost in my translation. So here is a bit of what he said -- word for word. When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes. I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now. This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept: No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary. Enough said. Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Prevention , All Cancers , Daily news Dealing with cancer in private is hard. Dealing with cancer publicly can be even harder. CEO Donna McAleer -- the founding executive and public face of the large, growing health care company Elant -- knows this firsthand. She just recently went public with her breast cancer diagnosis and prognosis after rumors of her demise started circulating. McAleer set the record straight, announcing that she is doing just fine. While her experience has been frightening, she is surviving well -- and she wants the public to know. She has run Elant for 20 years and wants to dispel any myths about its stability. Apple CEO Steve Jobs faced the same public drama in 2004 after surgery for pancreatic cancer and subsequent drops in Apple stock. Jobs recovered -- and so did the stock -- but the speculation that swirled was powerful and potentially damaging. Just as it was that same year when Kraft Foods was criticized for withholding details of its CEO's hospitalization.