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.

For the past six and a half years, I've been a full-time, stay-at-home mom. It's my job, just like my husband has a job. In his job, he gets to actually leave the house alone, go to the bathroom all by himself, eat lunch in peace with other adults, and collect a paycheck each and every month. I get none of that. Still, I get a lot. I got to hold my babies all day, every day when they were teeny, tiny. I got to love and nurture them and observe their every move. I saw them walk and talk for the first time, eat solid food, grasp toys, and eventually, head off to school.

Both of my boys are in school now, so I am without them for about five hours each weekday. Still, I am a full-time mom. I wake them in the morning, feed them breakfast, pack their lunches and backpacks, head them in the direction of matched clothing, urge them to brush their teeth and put on their shoes and buckle up tight in the car. I drive them to their respective schools and return promptly at the end of the school day to pick them up. And then we spend the afternoons together. It's a great job. I wouldn't trade it for anything -- not even a big, fat paycheck.

Today, I am grateful I get to be a stay-at-home mommy.

I'm not sure where I was headed professionally before cancer. I knew I was happy as a stay-at-home mom, and I didn't give much thought to what might come next. I was pretty certain I would not do what I did before kids -- college administration and counseling -- and that's as far as I'd gotten in my decision-making process.

It seems cancer would have further confused my future intentions. But it didn't. Instead, it led me in a direction I may have otherwise never discovered. First, it guided me to a part-time position at my kids' preschool. Just after surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation and in the midst of Herceptin breast cancer treatment, I felt a strong urge to reenter the world of the living. One day as I was dropping off my oldest child at his Pre-K class, I noticed an advertisement on the doors of the school. I inquired within -- and got a job working two afternoons per week.

The job was a blessing. I got to see my kids while I worked, interact with loving adults and children, and distract myself from the darkness of cancer.

Vincent Rennich, veteran casino worker and non-smoker, is suing the Atlantic City Tropicana Casino and Resort because he claims a quarter-century of inhaling secondhand smoke gave him lung cancer. And if that's not enough to make this man upset, getting fired seals the deal.

"They threw me under the bus," Rennich said yesterday, the day after a supervisor told him he was terminated from his job. "How can you fire a guy with lung cancer who's suing you? Maybe they don't realize the ramifications. Or maybe they're heartless. Or maybe all of the above."

Tropicana officials say that Rennich was not singled out in any way, that he was just one of many let go due to a restructuring of the company. Since last January, more than 200 people have been laid off.

Rennich, 49 and a table games supervisor, has been a vocal advocate of a total smoking ban in Altantic City's 11 casinos. He has been speaking out on behalf of everyone working on the casino floors, and for himself personally.

Rennich had a third of his right lung removed in September 2005 and sees a doctor every three months to ensure his cancer does not reappear. Now that he's been fired, his health insurance will lapse in 30 days, leaving him with a monthly payment of $800 in medical bills.

Atlantic City was slated to ban all casino smoking this past January. But fierce opposition from the casino industry, predicting an estimated revenue loss of 20 percent and job losses of more than 3,400, led to a compromise. And now, effective April 15, smoking will be restricted to no more than 25 percent of the gambling floor.

Rennich is not happy about this -- or his cancer or his termination. And while he is not sure what his next step will be, he says he is definitely not backing down from his anti-smoking platform.

Secondhand smoke rears its ugly head once again -- this time in the form of study results revealing high levels of secondhand smoke in the workplace can double the risk of lung cancer for non-smokers.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago looked at results from 22 studies conducted in the United States, Canada, Europe, India, Japan, and China. What they found -- and published in the American Journal of Public Health -- is a lung cancer risk 50 percent higher than normal for non-smokers exposed to smoke on the job for more than 30 years. They also found risk increases with level of exposure.

"We believe that our study provides the strongest evidence to date that smoking in the workplace does present a substantial risk to workers -- and particularly to workers who are working in highly exposed areas such as bar workers or restaurant workers," lead researcher Leslie Stayner said.

Previous evidence for increased lung cancer risk caused by secondhand smoke comes from studies of non-smokers married to smokers.

Secondhand smoke -- also known as passive smoke and environmental tobacco smoke -- is smoke from a cigarette, pipe, or cigar as well as smoke exhaled from the lungs of smokers and inhaled by non-smokers. It can cause cancer, respiratory problems, and asthma in non-smokers and is leading to increased efforts by communities to ban or limit smoking in the workplace.

This week in France, bans begin in offices, stores, schools, and hospitals. Come January 2008, cafes and restaurants must also comply with bans. For now, smoking in these areas is permitted in hermetically sealed rooms without any services.

Tampa's H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, the only comprehensive cancer center in Florida, has just partnered with Merck & Co., one of the world's largest drug companies, to develop personalized cancer treatments using a patient's genetic profile.

The two powerhouse entities will form a for-profit company called M2Gen on donated land near the University of South Florida. And in the span of just a few years, researchers plan to compile a database of tumor tissue and other medical information to determine why some patients respond to treatment while others do not. The database could house information on more than 30,000 patients within five years and will enable researchers to identify biological markers that could help doctors choose the most effective treatment based on the genetic make-up of each patient's tumor.

Blind treatment -- where everyone receives the same thing -- will be a thing of the past as tailor-made therapies replace the one-size-fits-all approach.

Florida Governor Jeb Bush says of the partnership that will create more than 170 high-paying jobs, "Man, I don't know if you can think of a better Christmas present than that."

"This is shocking. Having cancer should not cost you your home," states Macmillan Cancer Support's General Manager for Wales, Cath Lindley. For six percent of cancer patients, loss of home follows a diagnosis of cancer. In number, six percent represents approximately 15,000 people. For those who are self-employed, 11 percent lose their home. Another 18 percent face devastating financial hardship and desperately struggle to make the rent or mortgage payment.

What's going on? Cancer treatment can be debilitating and require the patient to take time off from work. Some cancer patients lose their job. Factor in increased medical costs including prescription drugs, special diets and transportation costs and it becomes a recipe for financial disaster, and ultimately, homelessness.

UK's Macmillan Cancer Support has launched Hitting Home, and in partnership with Shelter, a national housing charity program, to offer help to cancer patients who are in a financial bind as a result of a cancer diagnosis and treatment.

The Hitting Home program offers these tips for cancer patients facing financial difficulties:

• Talk to your mortgage lender and explain -- you may be able to switch to an interest only mortgage, defer payments or take a mortgage break. Or talk to your landlord and explain your situation.
• Check your insurance policies. You may find your rent or mortgage is covered.
• You might be entitled to claim benefits such as disability living allowance, income support, or housing tax benefit.

The tips are useful for anyone, regardless of the country in which they live. However, if you live in the UK, visit Macmillan Cancer Support for contact numbers and direct assistance.

I spend 10.5 hours every weekday on my own with some combination of my two little boys. My day starts each morning and extends through meals and playtime and laughs and tears and fights and struggles and snuggles -- but never a nap -- and even a part-time preschool job where one or two boys always tag along. Sometimes I try to write during the day while my boys are happy and occupied. Typically, I don't accomplish much. Interruptions are endless -- as they should be for a mostly stay-at-home mom who chooses to devote her daytime hours to raising children.

And so I go it alone until dinner time when my husband returns from work and selflessly takes over and sets me free. He cooks, serves, and cleans up dinner. He plays and entertains and wrestles and heads up bath and book time. And then he transports each boy on his back to their respective beds.

During my moments of freedom each evening, I lose myself in my thoughts -- and I begin to write. I love my mommy job -- and wouldn't trade it for any other full-time job -- but I also love being alone. And I love writing.

Helen Keller said, "I must have something besides husband and children, something I can devote myself to! I want to go on living even after my death! And therefore, I am grateful to God for giving me this gift, this possibility of developing myself, and of writing, of expressing all that is within me."

Writing -- mostly about cancer -- helps me develop my surviving self. It helps me express all that is within me. And maybe it's fitting that I don't get too much time to dwell on the disease that consumed me for two years. If I had to choose between two busy boys and a life busy with cancer, I'd take two boys in an instant. At the end of the day, a little bit of writing about a little of cancer suits me just fine.

Journalist, teacher, mother and eight-year breast cancer survivor Jeanne Sather is a self-described outspoken advocate for the cancer patient's point of view.

A vegetarian since the age of 16 and fairly active, she does not have any of the known risk factors for breast cancer. After an all-clear mammogram at the age of 40, she was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 43. In an ironic twist of employment fate, the very job she was hired to do in chronicling her life online as a breast cancer patient, may have led to her firing because of the flexible work schedule breast cancer treatment required.

With a sharp clarity and well-earned perspective, Sather is The Assertive Cancer Patient. To our good fortune here at The Cancer Blog, she has agreed to take part in our Survivor Spotlight series featuring interviews with breast cancer survivors.

Work gives us a sense of purpose; a way to provide for ourselves; and social contact -- all important to health and wellbeing. For those facing the struggles to survive cancer, work can represent a normalcy needed in a time where not much else seems very normal. The activity of work can reflect a hope that even though cancer has temporarily disrupted daily life, one day it will get better -- we are going to get better. Not losing your job when you must go through cancer treatment is a way of having your place in society saved. A message, we will all be here when you get back -- your work life will be here when you can come back.

BBC News investigated how some cancer patients are being mistreated in the workplace and it is appalling. One woman wanted to return to work after treatment for breast cancer and her managers asked her to resign for her own good. They were merely looking out for her, they said. Another woman was told she had become a bad investment.

You can read more at BBC News Cancer patients misery at work. If you are thinking, there ought to be a law -- there is a law to protect workers dealing with serious illnesses against job discrimination. Doesn't appear to stop some companies from acting like insensitive dolts, but there is a law.

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.

Geralyn Lucas, author of the memoir Why I Wore Lipstick to my Mastectomy can see the pages of her book come to life on the television screen this October -- during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month -- when Lifetime TV airs her story and spreads her word for all to see. Headlining in this Lifetime Original Movie are Sarah Chalke (Scrubs) and Jay Harrington (Desperate Housewives) whose performances will capture Lucas' struggle after a breast cancer diagnosis at age 27 and with a mastectomy, six months of chemotherapy, and a job she maintained throughout it all. Her job -- as an assistant story editor for the TV news program 20/20 -- kept her sane. While her physical world was falling apart, her mind was still working. And that -- along with a promotion during the same time -- kept her focused.

After her 1995 diagnosis, Lucas found herself working as Lifetime's own programming director. She also found herself as mom of post-cancer daughter Skye, and then found herself in the midst of writing a book. It wasn't her goal to write a book really -- but she took a writing class which prompted her to jot down her personal breast cancer story. And the rest is history -- and coming soon to a television screen near you. So stay tuned for October's programming schedule -- and find out why exactly Lucas wore lipstick to her mastectomy.

It's kind of a blur how exactly I came to receive a phone call from a volunteer at the American Cancer Society just after my breast cancer diagnosis. I must have checked a box on one of many medical forms shuffled my way during this confusing time. Or I requested assistance from someone, somewhere, at some point in time. I'm not really sure. But I am sure of this -- one very nice woman, a young breast cancer survivor herself, called me one afternoon from the Reach to Recovery program. She asked me about my situation, told me of hers, and led me to resources -- other survivors, support groups, and the fitness group Team Survivor -- and she met me one afternoon with a goodie bag full of information and comforting gifts. She was my first link to the world of breast cancer survivors.

I've come to know this woman in different circles since she first called me. She was a physical therapist at the same center where I received therapy for post-surgery and radiation concerns. She has been present at every walk and fitness event and cancer function I have attended. And she leads the local Team Survivor group -- so I receive e-mails from her about all sorts of events and gatherings and opportunities for joining a spirited group of strong women. And just today, I received an e-mail invitation from her -- intended for all young survivors she knows who might be interested in becoming Reach for Recovery volunteers. I replied instantly. Yes, I want to do it. She happily replied. So in a short time, I will receive training for this very important job.

It's not a hard job -- it just requires some phone calls and a few personal visits. And the ability to share advice. And words of wisdom. And love and care and compassion for those who may not know how to manage during a personal brush with breast cancer. Whether facing a possible breast cancer diagnosis, a new diagnosis, or a troubling time with lymphedema or reconstruction, Reach to Recovery volunteers offer a hand to anyone grasping for assistance.

I must have been grasping during my own difficult time. I just don't remember much about that time. All I know is that someone helped me at a critical time. And now it's my turn to be that someone.

Jo-Ann Campbell is suing her former employer, IntelliSoft Group of Nashua, a software company, because she says after her diagnosis of breast cancer they made the work environment uncomfortable -- and then they fired her.

According to the lawsuit, Campbell said Mary D'Amelio, the wife of the company's chief executive officer, John D'Amelio, told her she shouldn't be considered full time and should be reduced to part time, and Mary D'Amelio went on to tell her she was costing the company $10,000 dollars.

During breast cancer surgery and radiation treatment, Campbell said she was keeping up with the workload. Eventually, she was terminated. Campbell was a senior trainer who earned $55,000 a year. IntelliSoft denies she was discriminated against in any way and states they fully expect to win the lawsuit. You can read more details of the story here.

In a 45-day bike tour, and over halfway through, six international college students have been cycling across America to raise money for cancer research and blogging the daily journey at Cross Country for Cancer. There are three reasons I have been following the blog posts: one, these young men are spectacular for the undertaking of raising money for cancer research by pedaling coast-to-coast; two, some of the posts and photos with captions are Monty Python-esque hilarious (which I compared them to in the first post I blogged about them); and three, it has been interesting to see this country at pavement level through the eyes of a group not normally residents.

They have blogged gorgeous scenery seen and generous people met. They have also discovered where the Grinch works his summer job. In case you don't know, because I didn't, the Grinch is running the tram somewhere near Cotopaxi, Colorado.

I sometimes complain about the lack of warmth I've encountered from medical professionals throughout my journey with breast cancer. There have been glimpses of compassion. And there are a few who stand out as truly caring and concerned. But there seems to be a general lack of sensitivity. Maybe it's a side effect of the job -- distance -- that I should have been prepared for. But instead I was shocked by how I often felt forgotten, like a number, just one of many in my same boat. And this makes me sad -- for me and for all the others who sail rough waters in search of health. I have waited in lobbies for hours -- four hours one time -- and I've been encouraged to toughen up. I've rarely felt comforted -- except by a few who have hugged me or placed a hand on my shoulder. That's all it takes. A simple gesture or kind word.