Allan Blaustein went from doctor to doctor, being told he was suffering from fatigue or that he had asthma, before they discovered the lemon-sized tumor sitting in the middle of his chest between his heart and lungs. Thymus cancer is rare, no more than 500 cases of it are diagnosed a year. His 4 year-old son named his father's tumor the stinky ball. Now there is a blog and upcoming event by the same name.

Blaustein has finished with surgery and chemotherapy and has made it his mission to raise awareness for thymic cancer. He blogs The Stinky Ball, where he posted last July regarding cancer survivor Lance Armstrong's seventh Tour de France win, "With cancer survivor Lance Armstrong winning the Tour de France for the 7th time today, I felt compelled to make a significant guarantee of my own. One day I will once again be able to ride a stationary bike for 20 consecutive minutes on level 1! Whether I feel the wind whipping through my hair while on the stationary bike may be another story." The first annual Stinky Ball will be held on May 4, 2006, a celebration of life with a mandate to play more and work less -- all to benefit thymic cancer research, and to take the stink out of the stinky ball.