It's Father's Day. And all dads out there deserve a pat on the back, a sincere thank you, a celebration in their honor. But there's one group of dads to whom I'm giving special attention on this fine Sunday, June 17 -- dads with cancer.

Having been a mom with cancer, I know how parenting becomes doubly difficult when a life-threatening illness crowds into the picture. The usual mommy and daddy responsibilities are hard enough on their own. Add cancer and all sense of balance, control, and even joy can fly out the window.

Holding down the daddy fort while battling and surviving cancer is no small task. So let's honor some of the dads who manage this feat. Here are seven of them.

His name is not really Brian -- that's just the character actor Barry Watson plays on the ABC TV show What About Brian that just ended its season on March 26.

I really like this show. The network calls it a contemporary, heartwarming ensemble drama that continues to tell the stories of a group of close-knit friends in various stages of romantic relationships and friendships living in Los Angeles.

This is exactly why I like it. But there's an underlying story not written into the script that has compelled me to watch -- and truly enjoy -- this show.

Barry Watson, best known for his role as Matt Camden on the long-running WB series 7th Heaven, is surviving cancer. Diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in May 2002, he received treatment and reported in April 2003 that he was in remission. And he's been working hard ever since.

Watson is not only an actor. He is a husband -- his wife is Tracy Hutson of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition -- and he is a father. But most important in my book, Watson is a cancer survivor. And more than anything, this is what inspires me every time I watch What About Brian.

A few days ago I posted about Cathy's EC Cafe. It's a webpage designed to help those diagnosed with esophageal cancer. In that post I mentioned one of the stories I liked on the webpage written by a six year esophageal cancer survivor named Barry Bokhaut. I decided to email Barry and talk to him about his experience and any advice he might have for those diagnosed.

I think Barry's story is inspirational and can help others newly diagnosed know that survival is possible even though the statistics look grim. According to the American Cancer Society 13,770 of the 14,550 estimated cases of esophageal cancer in 2006 will die of their disease. At the current time only less than 20 percent of patients survive five years.

Barry answered the question as to why esphageal cancer is so hard to cure. "Esophageal cancer's low survival rates is in a large part due to the fact that the symptoms are very benign, and the disease is often very advanced before doctors properly diagnose it. Far too many people are told by their doctors that they are suffering from heart burn or indigestion, and are given antacids. By the time the difficultly in swallowing manifests, and the doctors get around to a full diagnostic workup, the disease is very established and extremely difficult to deal with, as it spreads quickly."