Lance Armstrong says his immediate goal in launching the LIVESTRONG Presidential Cancer Forum is to make sure whatever candidates we have now and then the two who ultimately fight for the presidency discuss the number one killer in this country. Just like they'd talk about war and terror and taxes, Armstrong says they should address the issue of cancer.

Armstrong has an army people behind him -- 65 million to be exact -- who say they care about this topic. Take a small percentage of those people, he says, and you've got a movement.

The movement begins on Monday, August 27 when the Democratic presidential candidates answer the cancer question from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM on MSNBC. On Tuesday, August 28, Republican candidates will tackle the cancer question at the same time, in the same place.

Cancer Schmancer is what actress and cancer survivor Fran Drescher titled her 2003 novel. Now, thanks to this spunky gal, there's a whole Cancer Schmancer movement taking place, a movement that will culminate this June with the launch of a non-profit organization with the name of -- you guessed it -- Cancer Schmancer.

Drescher says Cancer Schmancer is all about the politics of cancer education and funding, screening tests, early detection, the removal of carcinogens from women's products, and the often-dismissed truth that young women do get cancer.

Drescher, who for two years fought with doctors who persisted she was too young for uterine cancer -- she wasn't -- says her organization will raise awareness and change health policy to better promote diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of womens' cancers.

I heard a man interviewed on the news the other night who said the side effects of chemotherapy make him feel so poorly, so unlike he once felt. Recently, however, he discovered a remedy that makes him feel better, more like he did before chemotherapy took its toll on his well-being. His remedy -- reflexology.

Reflexology does not erase the side effects of chemotherapy, but it can provide relief for patients whose lives are altered by chemotherapy-induced nausea, pain, fatigue, and anxiety.

Reflexology, or zone therapy, is the application of pressure, stretch, and movement to the feet and hands in order to break up patterns of stress in corresponding parts of the body. There are many theories about how this practice actually works -- one is that applied pressure signals the nervous system to initiate changes in the brain which promotes inner balance. Still, all theories operate according to the belief that reflexology reduces stress and anxiety and lessens overall wear and tear on the body systems. And many medical professionals are incorporating this therapy into their cancer care programs.

Some doctors are not so quick to embrace this complementary therapy that has no real scientific backing. They believe reflexology is nothing more than a pseudoscience, offering the same benefits as massage.

The enthusiastic man I watched on the news is not concerned with popular opinion on the zone therapy he receives on his feet. It makes him feel better -- and that's all that concerns him.

Yoga can promote a greater sense of well-being, peace of mind and help cancer patients sleep more soundly, according to previous studies. Can Tibetan yoga relieve the side effects of chemotherapy? The National Cancer Institute, NCI, is interested in finding out and has awarded the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston $2.4 million dollars to continue research to determine if practicing Tibetan yoga can minimize chemotherapy side effects for  breast cancer patients as they undergo treatment. Tibetan yoga involves practices like controlled breathing, mindfulness and visualization. Once shrouded in mystery and considered a secret yoga practiced only by Tibetan monks, it is less known in the West than yoga practices from the Indian tradition, such as hatha yoga.

According to Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., director of the Integrative Medicine Program at M. D. Anderson, while the study is designed to look at improvements in quality of life, it could be that Tibetan yoga offers health benefits as well. "Theoretically, if the Tibetan yoga intervention is found to decrease the patient's stress level, it could have an impact on their immune system," Cohen says. "There is extensive evidence showing that stress suppresses cell-mediated immunity, a component of the immune system involved in tumor surveillance. Tibetan yoga also might have an impact on a patient's hormonal activity."

Menopause naturally happens in a woman's life some time between the age of 45 to 55. In the case of chemo-induced menopause, there is no traditional timeline. For younger women, menopause brought on by chemotherapy can be a temporary phase or permanent transition. For women already nearing the age when menopause might start to occur, chemotherapy can push them into it a few years early. But -- however a woman reaches the menopause phase of life -- the experience of menopause is universally the same. Knowing this, Jeanie Linders, a writer, produced the first Menopause The Musical in 2001. According to information provided on the show website, "Since its first performance, the show has evolved as a grassroots movement of women who deal with life after 40 and all the challenges that result in the mental, physical and spiritual freedom of over 38 million baby boomer females." According to the audience, it is hilarious!

Janet Rigdon wanted to see the musical, but it wasn't going to be touring anywhere near where she lived, so she emailed Linders to ask if the show could make a stop in her town. That's the beauty of email -- you can do that sort of thing. Rigdon told Linders she was an ovarian cancer survivor who felt the musical was something women cancer survivors like her and her support group of women friends could relate to when she said, “I told her we could go to dinner and then play, and take our minds off cancer for one night. We want to laugh too.”

After getting to know Rigdon through email conversations, Linders decided to use the show to raise awareness and research funds for ovarian cancer. Through the musical's Women Foundation, a national ovarian cancer campaign was launched under the banner Menopause the Musical Out Loud: Breaking the Silence of Ovarian Cancer. Rigdon and her friends got to see the show, and through the wonder of web email, a new campaign for cancer was launched -- in the form of a laugh out loud musical.

Thanks to Sue of My Menopause Blog for the introduction to a musical about menopause! Who knew.