We have heard it all. Performance enhancing drugs. The cancer drug treatment effect. Now it's having only one testicle that separates the winners from the losers. All possible reasons why Lance Armstrong became the seven-time Tour de France champion he became, according to the skeptics who keep throwing spurious suggestions to the media that the wins could not have been legitimately won.

I say, give Armstrong his due, as he is quite simply, the seven-time Tour de France champion, for no other reason that he is a supreme athlete who single-mindedly focused on his sport and ultimately gave what it took to win.

In Lance Armstrong: can cancer be performance-enhancing?, Robin Parisotto cites a recently published article that suggests Armstrong's ability to accomplish what most mere mortals only dream of, is due to the fact the man raced with only one testicle -- that the surgical removal of a testicle is performance-enhancing enough to make you an athletic champion. Parisotto goes into the long version of why the authors believe one testicle could give an athlete an advantage -- red blood cells, hormone ratios, and testosterone levels.

Parisotto ends with, "You can just see it now; some sick-minded male athletes now thinking that with only one testicle they can up their performance. Sorry, but I believe that two balls are still better than one."

Armstrong will be the first to tell you that cancer changed his life, by making him stronger in attitude and mental focus. This might be what those who are not familiar with the inner landscape of cancer are missing. It is a huge point to make, as surviving cancer often strengthens the resolve, focus and determination of many cancer patients in priorities of life important to them. It becomes you against cancer, a formidable obstacle to overcome, and it is all about winning. If anything enhanced an already outstanding natural talent, perhaps this is what gave Armstrong the added advantage that earns him the place of elite champion in his sport.

That cancer did change him by making him stronger in mind and spirit, and that he has gone on to create the LiveStrong Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer survivors on the same extraordinary level of success as winning the Tour de France might be compared to, seems far more likely the logical explanation for why he has been able to accomplish both athletic and altruistic feats of excellence.

I just ran three miles on my treadmill. I have never been the athletic one in my family. My sister is the one who was born with the athletic streak -- she played softball and lettered in tennis after giving the sport a try with no previous experience and may have helped her high school basketball team win a state championship if it weren't for the major knee injury she suffered just before the big game. I, on the other hand, was born with a streak that has something to do with hair, nails, and lots of shoes. I was never interested in sports, gym shorts, or sweating -- which is what makes running three miles a big deal for me.

I wish I had started running long ago -- because I really like it. I like the loud music that pumps through my MP3 player and the change in my cadence as each new song begins. I like the motivation of knowing I'm pushing my body and accomplishing a physical challenge. I like that my endurance improves with each mile I travel. I like the mental release and the thoughts that run through my head and the cleansing effect I get from running. And I like sweating.

It's possible running would not have appealed to me long ago, even if I had given it a try -- because times were different long ago. I was healthy. I was happy. And I had no reason to marvel at the possibilities of my body. Without a natural impulse for physical fitness and challenge, I was completely satisfied with the status quo. But now I have an acquired impulse -- because cancer has threatened the very body I once took for granted. And I want it to be strong. I want it to be healthy. I want it to stand up to any possible threat. So I run. And when I am not running, I look forward to running.

In just a few weeks, I will run in the 5K Making Strides for Breast Cancer event with my athletic sister. I will run by her side. With my loud music for motivation. With the inspiration that I am making a difference for my body and for women everywhere. With my gym shorts on. And a ball cap covering my hair. With sweat dripping down my face. I can't imagine a better feeling.

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.

When Robin Levin's healthy and athletic sister whose diet consisted of organic food loaded with good nutrition was diagnosed with breast cancer, Levin wondered how that was possible when they had no family history or lifestyle risks for breast cancer. Levin began to do research and found evidence that environmental pollutants and chemical toxins in the home can increase a woman's risk for breast cancer.

Based in part on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies that have found the air in homes is two to five times more chemically polluted than outdoor air, and
The Breast Cancer Fund report that stated 50 percent of breast cancer cases are the result of pollutants in the environment, Levin set out to find safer chemical-free products.

The search was not as simple as Levin might have thought, as she found many of the natural cleaners on the market still use synthetic chemicals for colorants and small amounts of ammonia and harsh additives. She came to the conclusion the only way to be certain of the ingredients in a product is to make them yourself from scratch.

ECO-Me is Levine's company, and Eco-Me Home Cleaning Starter Kit is the product she is hoping will make a difference in reducing cancer risks. Levin donates part of the profits from the sale of her kits to The Breast Cancer Fund and Cancer 101. To learn more about Eco-Me, read information in Eco-tips and Eco-news, the company has a website here.