Merv Griffin, inventor and producer of TV game shows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, has been hospitalized for a recurrence of prostate cancer. The cancer was discovered during a routine examination several weeks ago.

Now in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the 82-year-old Griffin says, "I'd rather play Jeopardy! than live it. I was ready for a vacation; however, this wasn't the destination I had in mind."

Griffin's son, Tony, said his father is getting great care. His medical team wants to monitor his progress in a controlled setting, he said, and that's why he's in the hospital.

According to TV Squad, Griffin has another game show in the works. Let's Play Crosswords will premiere in syndication across the country this fall.

I know just how Jon Lester feels as he survives the cancer that took him out of the game of baseball and threw him into the arms of the medical system.

It's not the baseball I can identify with. It's the little bit of cancer fear that never really goes away. And it's the will to return to the land of the living that Lester and I share.

"When you're laying in bed at night, when you're not doing anything, you think about it a little bit," he says. "As long as I keep busy, I'm all right. Every now and again I feel something and go, `OK, what was that?' but I try not to think about it too much."

Lately, Lester is thinking mostly about a return to Boston's pitching staff, less than six months after a cancer curve ball came right at him, threatening both his promising career and his life.

Lester, whose weight was down to 190 during chemotherapy, is back up to 212 -- five pounds less than his normal weight -- and his arms are powerful, his legs strong, his appearance healthy.

As a rookie last year, Lester became the first Red Sox left-hander to win his first five decisions. He was 7-2 with a 4.76 ERA when cancer came crashing into his world. Diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma in August, Lester received treatment at both the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and at his hometown Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. His last chemotherapy dose was delivered on December 4. His last check-up was in January. And now, newly 23 and cancer-free, Lester is ready to play ball.

Lester is prepared for his coaching staff to hold him back. He says he can tell everyone until he's blue in the face that he's ready but he knows the staff has his best interests in mind. He trusts their professional opinions, and he'll accept a return to the minors if that's what is in store for him.

"I'm not as hard on myself as I was last year," he said. "It's just a matter of enjoying playing baseball and not necessarily the result. So (I'm) just trying to enjoy things and take it day by day and live my life the best I can."

Two-time breast cancer survivor Tania Katan was first diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 21, and then again ten years later. With gutsy humor in an outlandishly candid expose, she faced cancer twice, dealt with a "supportive but neurotic family," swore off toxic girlfriends, wrote about her experiences in a book and performed a one-woman play, both called My One-Night Stand With Cancer.

Katan, who underwent a mastectomy each time she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and who appears naked above the waist in her back-of-the-book photo, ran a race to raise breast cancer awareness in the best form she thought possible -- topless. "People were racing for something very specific, to cure breast cancer, but they didn't want to see what breast cancer looks like."

On the Amazon webpage for her book, the description of My One-Night Stand With Cancer reads, "A Jewish lesbian's memoir loaded with humor. She survived to prove, perhaps, that laughter is in fact the best medicine. With lymph nodes negative and outlook positive despite lightning striking twice, this 10K runner shows great spirit and strength."

Sometimes all it takes is a small gesture to warm the heart of a cancer patient. It doesn't take anything huge. It shouldn't cause any stress or discomfort. And it shouldn't require a whole lot of thought. It should be simple. Simply simple.

A whole lot of small gestures spread a whole lot of cheer my way when I was knee-deep in cancer treatment and needed a lift. Cozy socks kept my feet and my spirits toasty. A package of brownies sweetened my sour days. Flowers brightened my dining room and my state of mind. Books left on my doorstep delivered knowledge and wisdom and a bit of humor to my world.

The options for spreading sunshine are endless. The list of possibilities could go on and on. Here is just a start -- a small list of small gestures that can make a dreary day downright delightful.

Give a hug
Send a handwritten letter
Make a homemade card
Write a poem
Give a journal
Deliver a candle
Make a home-cooked meal
Arrange for food delivery
Babysit children
Play with children
Drive to appointments
Go wig or hat shopping
Visit during chemotherapy sessions
Give something comfy -- socks, pajamas, hat
Do grocery shopping
Accompany to lunch, dinner, movie
Take a walk
Attend church
Have a picnic
Go fishing
Make a donation to favorite charity
Walk, run, volunteer, raise funds in honor of your special someone

Be specific in your gesturing. Trade a comment like "let me know if I can do anything" for "I'm going to come over and wash and clean your car on Saturday." Vague offers are rarely successful -- cancer patients are not likely to recall every general offer they receive and then manage them all into a schedule. It's just too much to consider in the midst of turmoil. But an offer that comes to life right before them is easy. It's effortless. It is truly a gift. A simple, priceless gift.

The University of Miami's first basketball All-American and member of the school's Athletic Hall of Fame died Friday of esophageal and colon cancer. Dick Hickox, a 5-6 guard who led the 1959-60 Hurricanes to a 23-3 record and a No. 8 ranking -- still the school's highest -- was 68 years old.

Hickox never meant to play basketball at UM. He went to Coral Gables with a friend who was homesick and who threatened to leave unless coach Bruce Hale brought in Hickox and a another friend. Hale agreed -- and had no idea what he was getting. Hickox averaged 22.1 points that season and went on to make history. He was named second All-American, alongside Providence guard Lenny Wilkens. Hickox drew crowds of 5,000 and celebrities -- like actors Burt Reynolds, George Hamilton, and then-Cassius Clay -- often cheered him on from under the basket.

Hickox spent his adult years working in the Dade County Public School system and was the business manager of the South Miami High athletic department. In March, he attended the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., and received a Legends Award. It was the best basketball weekend of his life, one friend said.

Hickox is survived by his wife, his son, and his daughter.

Melissa Etheridge's song Run for Life -- inspired by her own personal battle with breast cancer -- plays just as the pink and white SUNCHIPS® website is opened. And visitors to the site learn quickly that they can contribute to the Crunch for the Cure campaign by simply purchasing a bag of specially-marked SUNCHIPS® and entering in the special printed code here. For each code entered through December 15, 2006, SUNCHIPS® brand will donate .25 cents to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in support of its breast cancer initiatives. A pink breast cancer ribbon is the special mark on these bags of SUNCHIPS®, signifing a partnership in the fight against breast cancer.

This website also includes information about breast cancer, about Susan G. Komen races and volunteer opportunities -- and it even provides a means for thanking favorite Race for the Cure® volunteers. Readers can post their own thank-you messages that will appear on a virtual thank you wall.

Thank you SUNCHIPS® for your commitment to this cause.

When I was first diagnosed with breast cancer almost two years ago, my greatest fear was losing my hair. The fear was consuming, painful, over-the-top. That was long ago -- and I survived. I can look back now and realize that the panic about losing my hair was such a small-scale fear -- compared to what I fear now. Now I fear a recurrence of cancer. And it's a whole lot more disabling than a little worry about being bald.

I have a few techniques for settling my fears when they get out of control. Sometimes I take deep breaths. Sometimes I distract myself and occupy my mind with something more pleasant than anxiety -- like writing, exercising, playing with my little boys. And sometimes I read about others who have come before me and have handled the same distress I sometimes feel about cancer taking up residence in my body again. Mostly I learn from stories of other women who have survived breast cancer. And I learn that I can handle the fear, that I can handle cancer if it does come back. And the women I find most inspiring are those who have had a recurrence -- or two or three -- and who still manage to happily tackle the life they have in front of them. They give me hope that if a recurrence comes my way, I too can conquer it. And here are seven snippets of hope from the book Hope Lives! The After Breast Cancer Treatment Survival Handbook -- from women who keep on surviving breast cancer.

Eccentric hotelier and television personality Tim Hadcock-Mackay, who is reported to have been an active fundraiser for Sargent Cancer Care for Children, was found hanged. While the police investigating do not suspect foul play, nothing at this time has been ruled out.

According to news reports, Hadcock-Mackay was found in the woodlands behind his lavish 19th century manor Barnby Moor Hall. At the time of his death, Hadcock-Mackay and life partner Torquil Mackenzie-Buist were in talks for a new television show featuring their home to the public called Mayhem At The Manor.

You have just been told you need surgery. You have questions. Here's one you might not think to ask the surgeon. Do you play video games? Beth Israel Medical Center researchers asked and what they discovered is surgeons who play video games prior to surgery made less mistakes. During a laparoscopic surgical training course, surgeons who played video games before the laparoscopic surgery training exercise completed the procedure an average of 11 seconds faster with less error than the surgeons who did not play video games.

Dr. James Rosser, lead investigator of the study is quoted as saying, "Performing laparoscopic surgery is like trying to tie your shoe laces with three-foot-long chopsticks while watching on a TV screen." Laparoscopic surgical procedures are commonly performed for uterus or colon surgeries. Rosser has been playing video games for over thirty years. He wanted to minimize the number of surgical errors made by surgeons and developed the Top Gun Laparoscopic Surgery Skill and Suturing Program, and took his cue from the flight simulator training pilots use.