George Mitchell, the man leading an independent investigation of steroid use among Major League Baseball players -- he's also a former U.S. Senate Majority Leader -- has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

"The cancer is small, low grade and localized, and can be effectively treated and cured,'' says Mitchell's physician, The prognosis is very good for Mitchell, a Democrat from Maine.

Mitchell, 73, said in a statement that he expects his treatment will not interfere with his investigation that began in March 2006 when he was appointed by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to interview hundreds of people and review thousands of documents.

Major League Baseball and the Prostate Cancer Foundation teamed up this year to form the Home Run Challenge in honor of Father's Day. Their gift to father's across the country: for each home run hit in 60 selected games between June 6 and today, June 17, raised money for prostate cancer, the second most common cancer for men in the United States.

Some fans of this cause made pledges; some posted online tributes to their dads at Dockers San Francisco. For every message submitted, the company donated one dollar. Some messages were even shown in Times Square for all to see.

I just checked the status of the Home Run Challenge on this Father's Day morning and found the most updated total of home runs to be 91. Leading the accomplishment are Ken Griffey, Jr., Alex Rodriguez, and Alfonso Soriano. The current Team Home Run leader: the Cincinnati Reds.

Oakland Athletics center fielder Nick Swisher appeared at Saturday evening's pregame event wearing three ponytails. Prepared to donate his locks to the Pantene Beautiful Lengths non-profit campaign, Swisher said just before his ponytails were snipped, "I feel like Pippi Longstocking. I look so goofy right now. But if I can make a difference in one or two women's lives, it's worth it."

Swisher's father -- major league baseball player Steve Swisher -- did the cutting honors. And it was fitting the two men were in on this endeavor together because Swisher's grandmother -- his dad's mother -- died from brain cancer two years ago.

"The initial idea was out of respect for my mom -- but the second thing is: It's time for a haircut,'' Steve Swisher said. "I'm so proud of Nick. He's bringing attention to a good cause and that's what it's all about.''

Pantene creates free wigs for women dealing with hair loss from cancer treatment.

It's been a rough road for former Boise State basketball player Coby Karl, son of Denver Nuggets coach George Karl. The younger Karl, 23, had his thyroid removed 13 months ago due to papillary carcinoma, a treatable form of cancer. And he returned to the operating room just last week for the removal of cancerous lymph nodes.

Karl's recent surgery, intended to take two to three hours, lasted for seven hours. This worried Dad.

''When it goes longer and longer, you always think the worst, and start worrying about things like being under anesthesia that long and all the nightmares you have about surgeries,'' George Karl said.

But it turns out Coby was just fine -- doctors just wanted to be thorough -- and the ambitious young man plans to play ball as soon as possible.

Coby is expected to remain inactive for 10 days to two weeks. But after that, he is free to do whatever he wants. And what the 6-foot-4 guard wants to do is start working out in hopes of getting drafted by an NBA team.

''He is anxious to get into the NBA thing and celebrate basketball by trying to make it in this league,'' his dad says.

Hank Bauer, wounded World War II Marine and New York Yankees legacy, died on February 9 at the age of 84. The cause of death -- cancer.

Bauer, who managed the 1966 Baltimore Orioles to their first World Series title, was a three-time All-Star Yankees outfielder during his time with the team that won nine American League pennants and seven World Series titles in just 10 years. Bauer, a Yankees fixture from 1948-59, set the Series record with a 17-game hitting streak. His record still stands.

Yankees owner George Steinbrenner says, "Hank Bauer is an emblem of a generation that helped shape the landscape of our country. He was a natural leader and a teammate in every sense of the word, and his contributions went well beyond the baseball field. His service to the Yankees, his country, and his family shows why I have been so privileged to call him a friend."

Bauer's baseball accomplishments, which also include playing two seasons with and later managing the Kansas City Athletics and scouting for the Yankees and Royals, are not his only claims to fame. He also earned two Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts for his courageous dedication to the United States.

Enlisting in the Marines shortly after Pearl Harbor, Bauer was wounded in Okinawa when he was hit in the leg by shrapnel just 53 days after he arrived on the island with 64 other men. "Only six of us came out," said Bauer who signed with the Yankees minor league after his discharge and sported his Marine Corps crewcut throughout the baseball career that landed him with the likes of Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, and a young Roger Maris.

During the same week Bauer lost his life, two other players of his time also passed away -- Steve Barber, who pitched for Bauer in Baltimore and Lew Burdette, who played against the Yankees in the 1957 and 1958 World Series.

Bauer is remembered by many.

"I am truly heartbroken," says Berra. "Hank was a wonderful teammate and friend for so long. Nobody was more dedicated and proud to be a Yankee, he gave you everything he had."

Former Cincinnati Reds pitching coach Vern Ruhle died Saturday after a year-long battle with myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow. He was 55.

Ruhle, who missed the entire 2006 season following his diagnosis, had recently undergone stem cell transplants in hopes the procedures would successfully treat his cancer. But complications of the disease rendered the attempts unsuccessful.

Ruhle served 12 years as a major league pitching coach and worked in Houston, Philadelphia, and New York before joining the Reds in 2004. He had a career record of 67-88 with a 3.73 ERA.

Ruhle is survived by his wife, Sue, his daughter, Rebecca, his son, Kenny -- and his Cincinnati Reds family.

"The baseball and Cincinnati Reds families mourn the loss of an excellent coach, wonderful husband, and loving father," the Reds said in a statement. "In his 35 years in professional and collegiate baseball, Vern touched many people inside and outside the game. We are privileged to have been a part of his life. He will be greatly missed."

A stunned, devastated and overwhelmed Ken Griffey Jr. has learned this week that not one, but both parents have been diagnosed with cancer. His father, former Cincinnati Reds player Ken Griffey Sr. has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and his mother, Alberta "Bertie" Griffey has been diagnosed with colon cancer. His father's prostate cancer has been discovered in its early stage but his mother is scheduled for colon cancer surgery today.

Faced with tough decisions, he is not certain if he will play baseball this week or spend time with his parents. It is reported that his mother has asked him to continue playing baseball and the Reds manager has stated it wouldn't be a problem if Griffey wanted to take time off to be with his family.

According to Medline Plus, excluding skin cancers, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in men and in women in the United States. The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that about 106,680 new cases of colon cancer will be diagnosed this year alone. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer, other than skin cancers, for American men. The ACS estimates that one in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime. In the US, there are approximately 1.8 million prostate cancer survivors.

Players wearing pink helmets to support the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation will take the field in a major league lacrosse All Star game in Boston. Following the game, the autographed helmets will be auctioned off to raise money for the foundation. Each helmet has a player's team logo, a breast cancer ribbon and the player's name.

The Cascade company is a large manufacturer of both women's and men's lacrosse equipment with helmets sold anywhere between $69 to $249 in value. They also make helmets for other sports including field hockey and white water rafting. The Cascade Water Rescue Helmet is the top rated helmet in water rescue.

Go online to www.majorleaguelacrosse.com and www.cascadelacrosse.com to bid on the pink helmets being autographed by the players in the All Star lacrosse game. The auction ends July 20.

 

According to the National Consumers League, don't become a breast cancer statistic. Breast cancer is highly detectable through mammography screening. The earlier it is discovered, the greater a woman's chance for survival. Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women between the age of 40 to 55.

Because of this reality, a brochure -- Mammograms: Consumer Guide to Breast Cancer Detection -- is made available online as a PDF document. The brochure covers breast cancer facts; screening methods, frequently asked questions; reducing your breast cancer risks, and tips to take before mammography screening.

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, works to identify, protect, represent, and advance the economic and social interests of consumers and workers.

This Father's Day, as part of Major League Baseball's Prostate Cancer Foundation's Home Run Challenge, the seventh-inning stretch will be moved to the sixth inning to symbolize that one out of six men in the country will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. In addition, players, managers, coaches, trainers, umpires and groundskeepers will raise awareness and show support by wearing blue wristbands, blue ribbon uniform decals, blue eye glare and temporary blue ribbon tattoos.

"People are starting to age. We're just trying to make sure that people are aware of how important it is to get the message out and have guys talk about it, because as men, sometimes we're reluctant to talk about health issues," states Home Run Challenge spokesperson Ozzie Smith. "Being part of the baby boomers, this falls right into our lap. It's important to at least make an effort to make people more aware of how important it is to get checked. When we talk to them when they're 40 to 45, by the time they get to 50, they'll be ready to take the plunge to get things done."

See, you could take your dad to a ballgame and he could learn all about the need to be screened for prostate cancer without you trying to find a way to work the subject of your dad's prostate into conversation. For some, that conversation might be an easy one to have with dad. But for others, saying "Happy Father's Day and have you thought about your prostate lately," might seem awkward. Does Hallmark even make a card for that conversation? A day at the ballpark seems a clever solution.

Paul Gleason, who played the go-to bad guy in Trading Places and the angry high school principal in The Breakfast Club, has died. He was 67.  Gleason died at a local hospital Saturday of mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer linked to asbestos, said his wife, Susan Gleason.

"Whenever you were with Paul, there was never a dull moment," his wife said. "He was awesome."

A native of Miami, Gleason was an avid athlete. Before becoming an actor, he played Triple-A minor league baseball for a handful of clubs in the late 1950s. Gleason honed his acting skills with his mentor Lee Strasberg, whom he studied with at the Actors Studio beginning in the mid-1960s, family members said.  Through his career, Gleason appeared in over 60 movies that included Die Hard, Johnny Be Good, and National Lampoon's Van Wilder. Most recently, Gleason made a handful of television appearances in hit shows such as Friends and Seinfeld. Gleason's passions went beyond acting. He had recently published a book of poetry. 

"He was an athlete, an actor and a poet," said his daughter, Shannon Gleason-Grossman. "He gave me and my sister a love that is beyond description that will be with us and keep us strong for the rest of our lives."

Gleason was survived by his wife, two daughters and a granddaughter. Funeral plans were pending.

On Mother's Day, the Atlanta Braves and the Susan G. Komen Foundation will wrap up a week of breast cancer charity fundraising by hosting Breast Cancer Awareness Day. Breast cancer survivors will receive a free ticket to the game that day, attend a pre-game hospitality reception, and be given an Atlanta Braves Breast Cancer Awareness t-shirt. Also, before the game, breast cancer survivors -- with family and friends -- will participate in a Walk in the Park parade around the field and a field ceremony to celebrate breast cancer survivors. There will be an Atlanta Braves 50/50 raffle to benefit the Atlanta 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer. The Shades of Pink Breast Cancer Mass Choir will sing the National Anthem. For more information, visit the Atlanta Braves website.

On May 7, at Prince George's Stadium, the Bowie Baysox will host Pink in the Park prior to the game against the Trenton Thunder, where they will honor breast cancer survivors. All fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game to show their support of breast cancer awareness. The first 1,000 women attending the game will receive a limited edition pink Baysox logo baseball cap. The pink jerseys the players wear during the game will be auctioned, and the winners of the auction shirts will be able to go onto the field after the game and claim the shirt from the player. To learn more about minor league baseball team Bowie Baysox, visit the official Bowie Baysox website.

For sun worshipper Shonda Schilling, being diagnosed with Stage 2 melanoma was an unbelievable shock and a life-changing wake up call to the dangers of too much sun. As a result, Shonda and her husband Curt Schilling -- former Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher -- founded the Shade Foundation in a mission to eradicate melanoma through the education of children and the community in the prevention and detection of skin cancer and the promotion of sun safety.

The Shade Foundation provides shade structures for recreational areas on school grounds, and offers an extensive online resource of educational information and programs to raise awareness for sun safety. According to the American Academy of Dermatology and Shade Foundation, skin cancer is an unrecognized epidemic. Statistically, one in five Americans will develop skin cancer, and the diagnosis of younger adults with skin cancer has increased sharply. Half of all new cancers in the United States are skin cancers.

To be sun safe when going outdoors, they recommend sunscreen, a broad-brimmed hat and sunglasses. And stay away from tanning beds -- because occasional yet intense UVA exposure from tanning beds actually poses a greater risk of melanoma skin cancer than does spending long hours in the sun. To learn more about sun safe activities for kids and young adults, programs, educational materials, and creating shade, visit the Shade Foundation.

I asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end
How's it hit 'cha when you get that kind of news?
Man what did ya do?
He said

I went skydiving
I went rocky mountain climbing
I went two point seven seconds on a bull named Fu Man Chu
And I loved deeper
And I spoke sweeter
And I gave forgiveness I'd been denyin'
And he said some day I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dyin' -- Live Like You Were Dying lyrics

While Tim McGraw was recording Live Like You Were Dying, he lost his father, Tug McGraw, to brain cancer. During the two years Phillies and Mets major league baseball player relief pitcher Tug McGraw was battling brain cancer, he established the Tug McGraw Foundation. Recently, the Tug McGraw Foundation launched a website to provide people living with brain cancer information and support for the special issues facing survivors, family and friends. Tim McGraw will be the honorary chairman for his father's foundation. The song Live Like You Were Dying became one of McGraw's fastest rising singles and stayed on top of the Pop and Country charts for ten weeks, the longest stretch in thirty years.