Filed under: Multiple Myeloma , Daily news , Celebrity in memoriam , Celebrity news Keyboardist and songwriter Richard Bell, one-time member of Janis Joplin's band, died one June 15 of multiple myeloma in a Toronto hospital. He was 61.

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Celebrity fundraisers , Products , Cancer Survivors Grammy-award winning singer, songwriter, and breast cancer survivor Sheryl Crow was honored with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation's Humanitarian Award at the annual symposium and luncheon event at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. Crow has joined the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) to promote breast cancer prevention and raise funds for research in finding a cure. During her music tour with John Mayer, Crow donated 50 cents of every concert ticket sold to the breast cancer organization. She also offered a breast cancer t-shirt with her logo design for sale with 100 percent of the profits donated to BCRF. The t-shirt is now available on Crow's website. In addition, Crow has lent her support to jewelry designer Mauri Pioppo, who created a very special Sundari necklace to benefit BCRF during October. According to the product details, "Sundari is the Hindu Goddess of beauty and grace, and Mauri Pioppo was inspired by Sheryl Crow's courage in the face of her personal experience with breast cancer to createthe Sundari necklace." Crow is an incredibly talented singer songwriter. She is also an awesome lady with a healthy sense of humor. During the luncheon in which she was given the Humanitarian Award, she remarked to the audience, "In a show business world that puts so much emphasis on cleavage, I was never known for my breasts until I got breast cancer." Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Celebrity spokesperson , Politics , Opinion Singer and songwriter Jewel sat down with ABC News This Week's George Stephanopoulos to discuss her support of a bill that will allow women to stay in the hospital at least 48 hours after a mastectomy. Called drive-thru mastectomies, the current practice of discharging women hours after surgery does not allow women sufficient time to heal before being released from the hospital. During the interview Jewel placed the blame on insurance companies and HMOs who have decided that a mastectomy is not major surgery but an outpatient procedure. You have got to be kidding me, what an absurdity. As Jewel stated, "This certainly isn't a merely feminist issue. This is about the care of our loved ones." I don't see it as much a feminist issue as simply a matter of compassionate, and in this case, safe health care of mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters. The obnoxious practice of bean counters to decide that any major surgery is an outpatient procedure to save on health care expenses has been going on far too long. Jewel will travel to Washington to help deliver 12 million signatures to Congress to support a health care bill that requires insurance companies and HMOs to cover the cost of proper care for women undergoing mastectomy. The VOICES: Jewel Lobbies for Breast Cancer Bill interview is available as video for viewing online. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Oral Cancer , Opinion , Smoking , Celebrity news From Blabbermouth : Eddie Van Halen has developed a cure for cancer. Yep. Is he telling anyone what the cure is? Nope. Did smoking cause his two bouts of oral cancer? According to Eddie Van Halen, smoking did not cause his cancer, and he still smokes. What caused his cancer? He speculates it might have been the metal guitar pick he used. This story comes from Launch Radio Networks, who reported on the Sirius Satellite Radio conversation Eddie Van Halen had with Howard Stern last Friday. I didn't hear the radio program, as my tolerance for Stern is low, but I do regret I missed this conversation. I feel as if some significant portion of the conversation got left out in the retelling of the event -- but if not -- what do you mean you have a cure for cancer but you are not telling anyone? Metal guitar pick? Eddie, please stop talking about cancer. I am a huge fan but this sounds utterly nonsensical. Anyone else listen to this call-in from Eddie Van Halen to the Howard Stern Show? Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Leukemia , Chemotherapy , Celebrity fundraisers , Celebrity cancer diagnosis , Stem Cell , Daily news , Celebrity news

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Television , Celebrity news CNN is hosting Ask Sheryl Crow , an online form that you use to submit your question directly to the singer, songwriter and breast cancer survivor. Crow was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this spring, and went through cancer treatments immediately after the diagnosis. As a breast cancer survivor, Crow wants to reach out to others who have questions in regard to cancer and being a cancer survivor. On Monday, July 31, CNN will publish Crow's responses to the questions sent in online. She is also scheduled to appear on CNN's Larry King Live the same day. Sheryl Crow is emerging as an active advocate for cancer survivorship. Recently, before she joined the Dave Matthews Band in a concert at Fenway Park, Crow made a surprise visit to Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute to visit children with cancer at the Jimmy Fund Clinic . In addition, Crow sat down for a two-part exclusive interview with ABC's Good Morning America Diane Sawyer, where she opened up about the breakup with Lance Armstrong, her breast cancer diagnosis and her life as a breast cancer survivor. Sheryl Crow is a cancer survivor who is giving back. If you have a question you would like Sheryl Crow to answer, just ask her . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Celebrity in memoriam , Celebrity news Sunday, at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Milan B. Williams, keyboardist and one of the original founding members of the Commodores, lost his life to cancer. The musicians who met in college at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in the late 60's, got together and formed a band later to become internationally famous and known as the Commodores. Williams wrote the first hit for the band, Machine Gun. Later hits of the band included Brick House, Easy, and Three Times A Lady. When lead singer Lionel Richie left the band to strike out on his own, Williams remained with the original band members. "He was once, twice, three times a brother and we love him. He gave all that he could give to the Commodores. He'll always be remembered," said Commodores band member Walter Orange. Williams was 58. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Celebrity in memoriam , Celebrity news Sunday, at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Milan B. Williams, keyboardist and one of the original founding members of the Commodores, lost his life to cancer. The musicians who met in college at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in the late 60's, got together and formed a band later to become internationally famous and known as the Commodores. Williams wrote the first hit for the band, Machine Gun. Later hits of the band included Brick House, Easy, and Three Times A Lady. When lead singer Lionel Richie left the band to strike out on his own, Williams remained with the original band members. "He was once, twice, three times a brother and we love him. He gave all that he could give to the Commodores. He'll always be remembered," said Commodores band member Walter Orange. Williams was 58. Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Celebrity cancer diagnosis , Television , Celebrity news The public liked the idea of Sheryl Crow and Lance Armstrong as a couple, and the media treated them pleasantly when covering them as a couple. When the marriage was called off, not much was said about it other than announcing it had happened, and the public accepted that sometimes things just don't work out between two people. However, when the news of Crow's breast cancer diagnosis broke, so soon after the breakup, speculation followed. Had one of the most famous cancer survivors walked out on Crow when the chips were down? It didn't make sense at the time that a man who has dedicated his life to improving the quality of life for cancer survivors would do that -- but since nothing was ever said one way or the other the rumors continued to lurk in the shadows between imagination and fact. In a two-part exclusive interview with ABC's Good Morning America Diane Sawyer, Sheryl Crow opens up about the breakup with Lance Armstrong and being diagnosed with breast cancer. After being told she had breast cancer, Lance Armstrong was one of the first people she contacted. He was on a solo trip from Lake Tahoe to Oregon. He was about to turn around and return to LA to be with Crow and she told him she did not want him to do that for her. And so, for the personal reasons why the relationship did not work out is a private matter between two good people who insist they still love each other, and past that it should not be our business -- but as Crow makes clear -- Armstrong did not abandon her. You can watch video clips of the television interview online here , and read the interview in print here . The most inspiring moment came when Crow said, "People go through challenging moments of losing people and of having their life threatened from illness and real grief. But they get through it. And that's the testament to the human spirit and it's -- we are fragile, but we also are divine." Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments

Filed under: Breast Cancer , Prevention , Cancer prevention foods , Blogs , Celebrity news "I will never forget what the experience has taught me....who I am, who I want to be, who I can never be again. It was a hard time but I'd rather have the really hard stuff than to never know what I know now." -- Sheryl Crow, Letter from the Road. Sheryl Crow has returned to performing after her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment last spring, and she keeps an online diary. In the latest post Letter from the Road: The C, The Food, A Star , she shares some of her thoughts about being a cancer survivor and tips from her nutritionist. A few of the tips I already knew, some came as a surprise. Here is a sampling of what Sheryl said her nutritionist Rachel Bellar taught her:

• Don't drink water from a bottle that has been sitting in your car. Heated plastic will bleed toxic substances that can be carcinogenic.
• Do NOT cook in olive oil at high heat. This too is carcinogenic. It is fine to saute in olive oil but if you are browning or frying, use canola oil.
• Spices that are cancer preventative, particularly prostate and colon cancer, are cinnamon and tumeric.
• A high omega 6 diet consisting of fish, colorful vegetables, high fiber foods have proven to be cancer preventative. In Asian and Eskimo cultures, the rate of breast cancer is shockingly lower. Whenever you have a choice, go with color -- brown rice instead of white -- sweet potato instead of regular potato.

Basically, bright dark and green. I knew that olive oil is good for you, but I did not know that it is dangerous to cook with it at high heat. To read more tips, and to find out about the star in the title of her latest diary entry, go here . Read     Permalink     Email this     Linking Blogs     Comments