I'm dizzy, light-headed, over-heated and just plain worn out after my workout this morning. Why? Because I overdid it.

I've been so focused on running from cancer by eating right and strenuously exercising -- research says it take five hours of vigorous exercise per week to keep breast cancer away -- that I drove myself to depletion this morning. It hit me when a wave of dizziness came over me in the midst of my outdoor workout. My body felt heavy, my strength disappeared, and it took every ounce of energy I could muster to put one foot in front of the other so I could get home. I suspect it was a combination of dehydration -- I didn't take water with me -- and heat -- it's really hot here in Florida -- and pushing myself too hard. The fact that I feel a bit under the weather didn't help either, I'm sure.

My body spoke to me today. And it's got my attention.

The following post is one of a series of posts appearing Monday through Friday on The Cancer Blog. This feature -- Today, I am grateful -- allows me to share with readers my appreciation for all the treasures in my life, both big and small. In my post-cancer world, I find It healing for my soul to be mindful of the good in my life. It is my pleasure to share my gratitude with you.

It's hot here in Florida -- steamy, sticky, humid, unbearable hot. The kind of hot that makes me sweat in an instant. The kind of hot that keeps me and my kids cooped up in the air-conditioned indoors for as long as we can stand it. The kind of hot that has me dreaming about cool, crisp, chilly days. I'd even take downright cold at the moment -- anything other than this treacherous heat.

It's only August, which in Florida means there's still a few months of blistering weather remaining. September will be hot, October could be hot -- last year's trick-or-treat extravaganza was pretty darn warm -- and then maybe in November, we'll get some relief. I don't prefer to wait this long for my favorite of all temperatures -- high 60s, low 70s -- but I'll make it. I might even enjoy the wait while I fantasize of wearing sweaters and jackets and long pants. There's something about anticipation that makes life exciting. The countdown is on.

Today, I am grateful for the promise of cooler temperatures.

Now here's some good news for Tamoxifen-taking, hot-flash suffering women. A new study finds women who have lots of hot flashes during treatment with the breast cancer drug Tamoxifen have a lower risk of recurrence than women who don't suffer from the annoying waves of heat commonly associated with menopause.

"This study provides the first evidence that hot flashes may be an indicator of a better prognosis in women with early stage breast cancer," said study author John P. Pierce, Ph.D., from the University of California at San Diego. "Our data supports the possibility of a significant association between hot flashes and disease outcome."

More study is necessary to determine whether or not hot flashes -- which may predict better outcomes than severity of cancer, hormone receptor status, and age -- are associated with Tamoxifen and breast cancer progression.

It feels like summer here in Florida. Our temps topped 86 degrees last week and this kind of heat prompts my little boys to request their favorite summertime activity: swimming.

My kids don't quite understand that the temperature outside is not the same as the temperature of unheated water. And so as soon as warm weather arrives, they dash for their suits and insist we make a trip to the neighborhood pool. I oblige, convinced they'll want to head home once they submerge their piggy toes in pure ice.

But somehow, the temperature doesn't register. They plunge right in, dunk their heads and kick and flop and float. They are happy as clams, quivering lips and all. I am happy too as I watch their joyous moments from the privacy of my lounge chair, tucked away in the shade that borders my kids' perfect playland.

Thanks to chemo, I am the mommy who hides in the shadows during any sunny event. It's been two whole years since my last dose of toxic drugs, but something about the sun and the heat and the residual effects of my infused poison causes my skin to produce red, itchy, unsightly bumps. It happened last year and already this year and I'm wondering now if this will be a life-long nuisance, if I will be seeking shade for the rest of my years.

It's all OK really. Secluding myself from the sun's rays is a pretty healthy venture. And I'm not a real pool enthusiast. Any my boys are old enough to swim independently. And it's peaceful in the shade. So I'm not bitter about this unexpected side effect of chemo -- it's called UV recall -- and I'm not complaining. I'm merely marveling at the power of the drugs that hopefully killed all the cancer in my body, the drugs that seem to creep back year after year, perhaps reminding me that in the whole scheme of things, red, itchy, unsightly bumps are not such a bad life condition.

It's been so long I can barely remember the cause of the family rift that kept me separated from an aunt, an uncle, and cousins for many years. All that remains clear is that a once-close family split apart because of disagreement and hurt feelings and that my grandma -- the glue that held this family together for more than 50 years -- was heartbroken. She did everything she could to repair the damage of her splintered family. But despite begging, pleading, and continued prayers, reconciliation seemed impossible -- until it became evident this sweet woman was about to die.

The progress was slow and began with a rallying of family members at my grandma's bedside. She was somewhat incoherent at the time, and I'm not quite sure if she realized her broken family was on the mend. But I hope she knows, in some heavenly way, that she is the one who ultimately brought everyone together.

After her passing, we all gathered for her memorial service. We took turns spreading her ashes at a tree planted in her honor. We talked and visited and laughed and ate. We broke the ice and opened the door for further interaction. It was refreshing to mourn the loss of Gram without overriding tension and conflict.

I'm not sure if family relations would have continued without what happened next. I suspect we may have all returned to our lives and gone our separate ways, happy we had reconnected but still missing the closeness we once experienced. But then cancer entered our lives, shocked us all, and gave us all reason to stay in touch.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer not long after my grandma died. And the same people who came to her bedside came to my rescue in ways I never would have imagined in the heat of battle. The same people who for years were absent from my life were the ones offering me support and encouragement and love. They helped me get better.

Once I was better, life returned to a somewhat normal routine. And maybe we would have routinely slipped back into our selfish ways. But illness struck again, requiring we all step back up to the plate.

My uncle, who has lived with diabetes for many years, was faced this year with losing his foot. Thankfully, he found specialists who gave him hope and reason to travel every month for several months to a clinic in my city, where eight family members live and where options never before available to him became a reality -- both medically and personally.

My uncle is doing well, walking on his foot with the aid of a brace. And our family is doing well, as a result of frequent visits, lunches, and continued laughs.

It took death and disease to bridge the gap that existed for much too long between the members of my family. And just this weekend, after spending a glorious weekend with my long-lost cousins, I realized we have possibly arrived back where we once started -- before whatever led to our disagreement and hurt feelings drove us apart.

I believe Gram is smiling down upon us at this very moment, content at last that her three beautiful children -- and their children and their children -- are again a happy family.

Hyperthermia therapy with radiation have been added to the 2007 National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology for Breast Cancer as an approved treatment for recurrent breast cancer and other localized cancer recurrences.

According to an explanation by the BSD Medical Treat with Heat website, hyperthermia therapy uses heat, which has been shown to kill cancer cells, in the treatment of cancerous tumors. Hyperthermia therapy also appears to make radiation therapy more effective. "While it has been known for hundreds of years that fevers can kill cancer, only recently has technology been developed that can control and focus heat specifically on tumors. This technology is found in the BSD-500 Hyperthermia System."

The BSD-500 Hyperthermia System is already used in the treatment of skin cancers that are progressive or recurrent despite conventional therapy. To learn more about hyperthermia therapy, request a free information kit, learn treatment options, find a physician, or speak to a patient advisor, visit the Treat with Heat website.

Firefighters pull off heroic maneuvers all the time. Heat and smoke and fire are their constant companions. Emergency scenarios keep them perpetually challenged. Risking their lives is a top job responsibility. I can't imagine taking on this line of work, yet I am amazed by those who do -- for their eagerness to save lives while compromising their own. And to read today that cancer is another occupational hazard for firefighters makes me appreciate them even more.

In Edmonton, a firefighter who was praised as a hero for saving the life of a rookie firefighter in 2003 died on Saturday of job-related cancer at the age of 47 -- just two years after doctors diagnosed him with a terminal form of multiple myeloma. Clarke Stevens was expected to live for five years.

Ken Block, president of the Edmonton firefighters union said Stevens' death is a reminder of the risks these heroes take. Block says firefighters are between two and four times more likely to develop certain cancers, and Stevens is the fifth Edmonton firefighter to die of cancer since 2004.

It takes a special person to make saving others' lives a priority. To risk death in so many ways -- for the benefit of strangers -- must be the true definition of selflessness. And thank goodness for these selfless individuals who help keep the rest of us safe.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia researchers surveyed the parents of 636 children -- parents of 318 children that had been diagnosed with brain tumors and parents of 318 children who were healthy. Based on the knowledge that heat damages sperm, they asked the parents to try to remember the frequency of exposure to excessive heat -- saunas, hot tubs and electric blankets -- in the three months leading up to the conception of their child. If the average age of children diagnosed with the two brain tumors the researchers were focused on, medulloblastoma and primitive neuroectodermal tumors, then the parents were being asked to remember back on average four to ten years.

According to the researchers report, heat exposure among the men in the three months before conception appeared to be linked to brain cancer risk among the children. The researchers do conclude by stating that the idea that paternal heat exposure before a child's conception and increased risk of these childhood brain cancers must be considered speculative until more proof is found.

The last statement made by the researchers might be the most significant. Now that I have told you what BBC News is reporting about this study, which I assume the researchers in some form released to the news media, let me say I believe you could fly a space shuttle through the speculative link between heat-damaged sperm and childhood brain tumors based on a survey. How good is your long-term memory in recalling daily life four to ten years ago? How many ways can a man's sperm become overheated?

I hope in the case of this study, the news will come with a substantial and cautionary warning that it might very well be a connection of dots that do not connect. I can think of nothing more additionally painful for a worried father who is facing his child's cancer diagnosis, than to have it even suggested that his overheated sperm might be the reason for his child's suffering -- when in fact it might have nothing at all to do with his child's brain tumor. The only known fact about childhood brain tumors is that researchers are looking into environmental and genetic factors for clues, and there is little concrete evidence as to what causes childhood brain tumors.

Where does the time go? Even though most of us have been experiencing the height of the summer season in the form of a nationwide scorcher of a heat wave, summer is almost over for school kids and teens leaving for college. Yes, in less than a month, it's back to school. There are advertisements everywhere you look for new school supplies and new school clothes. In preparation for the new school season, Duke Health has published Back to School Tips for Healthy Eating.

The experts say it is not about counting fat grams and calories but portion control and choices. According to pediatrician Dr. Terrill Bravender, "You don't have to be obsessive about it. If you generally eat healthy, there is room for some foods that aren't as healthy."

Dr. Bravender offers these basic common sense tips:

• Involve kids in lunchbox planning. If you let them make some choices about what goes into their lunchbox, they are more likely to eat it.
• Avoid the peanut butter and jelly rut. Nothing wrong with the traditional, but try new foods. Make it a food adventure.
• While everyone is still on summer break, encourage children to prepare their own lunch. Dr. Bravender suggests easy-to-make ideas like graham crackers with peanut butter and a glass of milk; fresh fruit with cheese cubes; a hard boiled egg with whole grain crackers; yogurt with a sliced banana; granola bars with milk; or tortilla chips and bean dip made without hydrogenated oils.
  

Ultimately, as the mother, what foods come in to the home are my choosing, so I try to make nutritious choices in food purchases. But I have found great success over the years by taking my kids to the grocery store with me, and allowing them to choose between several choices I offer. We also take a look at new foods, and talk about the food item. We read ingredients. Some we decide, by group vote, to bring home and try. During the growing seasons, they are with me when I stop at a roadside stand to buy local produce straight from the field, and each year we have an annual tradition of blueberry picking enough blueberries to last most of the year ahead. Food can be fun, and learning about good food a lifetime benefit in cancer prevention.

ABC News aired a health news story to discuss the Lance Armstrong Effect, named after the seven-time Tour de France champion who survived testicular cancer even after it had spread to his lungs and brain -- why so many testicular cancer patients survive cancer -- and how it might be heat that is killing testicular cancer cells.

Johns Hopkins University researchers hypothesis it might be simply a matter of heat. Testicles are naturally a few degrees cooler than the rest of the body, and when the temperature of testicles are raised to normal body temperature, testicular cancer cells appear to be destroyed.

Because Armstrong's testicular cancer had spread beyond his testicles, researchers began to consider that heat might have played a role. The focus on Armstrong led to the term the Lance Armstrong Effect when referring to cancer cells destroyed by heat. In all fairness, the oncologists point out, this could have been named after any testicular cancer survivor.

"We've known for a long time that heating cancer cells kills them," said Dr. Donald L. Trump, an oncologist and senior vice president of clinical research at Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, N.Y. Hypothermia treatment has been used in kidney and liver cancer cases.

In the interview, Dr. Trump explained that a needle is inserted into the tumor and the temperature raised up to 120 degrees. For whole body hypothermia treatment, the temperature can only safely be raised to 102 to 106 degrees. To watch the news video and learn more about the Lance Armstrong Effect and the applications of heat in killing cancer cells, go here.

During the warmer months, it's all about the barbeque. Of course, we have been known to barbeque during winter in the snow, but for the purpose and timing of this discussion, when it's summer in the northern hemisphere, almost everyone fires up the barbeque. Because research has suggested that barbequing meats can increase cancer risks associated with charred food, the Dana Farber Cancer Institute offers these tips to grilling red meats, poultry and fish safely:

• Choose lean cuts of meat. Trim excess fat and remove the skin.
• Avoid thick marinades, as they increase charring. Use thin marinades that have vinegar or lemon as one of the ingredients.
• Flip burgers once every minute.
• Place food at least six inches away from the heat source.
• Line the grill with perforated aluminum foil to prevent drippings from creating smoke.
• Cook on cedar planks. 
• Consider kabobs. They take less grilling time.
• Consider grilling your favorite vegetables instead of just meat.
  

These tips are followed with some common sense advice. If you avoid charring all the red meat, poultry and fish you barbeque, the expert nutritionists at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute state that your risk of getting cancer from grilling food is extremely low. According to the information, not eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables is a bigger risk factor for cancer than eating the occasional barbequed meats. I like common sense perspective.

Before my radiation for breast cancer, I heard horror stories about the treatment. I heard that I might be extremely tired and severely burned and that I might feel generally unwell for the time it would take to completely zap any and all traces of cancer surrounding my breast. But my own radiation wasn't all that bad -- and really, the worst part of the whole therapy for me was the drive to and from the cancer center every day for seven weeks. It was a hassle, a nuisance, a bother. There were other small annoyances throughout the course of my radiation, but they were minimal -- thanks to some secrets that were shared with me along the scorching path of radiation and beyond. And here are seven of them.