The process of genetically modifying something is widely believed to be bad (hence the organic movement) but what if genetic modifacation cured cancer? Don't worry, I'm not talking about your food here -- genetic modification of skin cells has been shown to fight a deadly form of childhood cancer.

In tests involving mice performed at the University College London's Institute of Child Health, results a promising when genetically modified skin cells are pitted against neuroblastoma. Although rare, the condition is potentially fatal and accounts for 10% of childhood cancer.

Besides preventing birth defects in the brain and spine and other congenital abnormalities, the folic acid found in prenatal multivitamins has now been shown to prevent cancer in children whose mothers take the vitamins during pregnancy.

A new Canadian study, appearing online in the journal Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, estimates prenatal multivitamin supplements can save hundreds of children each year in Canada -- where only 40 to 50 percent of women take prenatal vitamins -- from developing leukemia, brain tumors, or neuroblastoma. And the vitamins may prevent 900 cases of pediatric leukemia and more than 300 brain tumor cases annually in the United States.

It's not clear which vitamins or minerals, and in what amounts, could be protecting babies from cancer, but it's possible folic acid -- critical for cellular function -- may be acting alone.

One thing is certain, says lead investigator Dr. Gideon Koren -- this is one inexpensive way to prevent cancer.

Neuroblastoma is the most common tumor in infants younger than one year of age and a common solid tumor found in children. Neuroblastoma accounts for 7-10 percent of childhood cancers. It is a solid tumor that arises in a part of the nervous system outside of the brain.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital says that Neuroblastoma tumors have been successfully treated in the lab with genetically modified cells that sought out and activated a chemotherapy drug placed directly at the cancer cells.

The chemotherapy drug, called CPT-11, is already used to treat cancers, doctors and scientists already know how the drugs behaves in humans. This should make it easier to translate the lab findings to the clinic. The researchers showed that the modified cells migrated to tumors regardless of how small the tumors were or where they were located in the body.

The homing ability of these cells, called neural stem-progenitor cells (NSPCs), can be used to target solid tumors that have metastasized. The researchers based their new treatment on work previously reported that showed certain NSPCs have a natural tendency to seek out damaged or cancerous areas in the brain.

When Denise Ashford was 14 weeks pregnant, a fetal ultrasound scan revealed signs of a tumor in her unborn child. Her child had cancer. The young mother, only 19 years old at the time, was counseled on having an abortion. The cancer her baby had was neuroblastoma, a cancer that forms in nerve tissue of the adrenal gland, neck, chest, or spinal cord. Ashford, and the father Peter Thomas, refused to consider aborting the baby -- they said they would hang on for a miracle.

Each week, tests were done to watch how the unborn baby's tumor was growing. Within weeks, the tumor had begun to shrink.

"The doctors told us that sometimes in very small children this type of tumor can shrink over time. But then over the next four weeks, we were given some even more unbelievable news -- the tumor had disappeared altogether," stated Ashford.

Kiah Thomas came into this world at 6 pounds 1 ounce, and celebrates her fifth birthday as a happy healthy child. At the time of her birth, doctors said it was very rare for cancer to be detected in a baby before birth and then for it to disappear. But it happens. Called spontaneous remission, regression or miracles, stories of cancer patients defying the greatest of odds or having cancer suddenly disappear have always been told, as anecdotal evidence of mysteries we do not fully understand or have yet to seriously study.

For more information about spontaneous remission, the Institute of Noetic Sciences has compiled the largest database of medically reported cases of spontaneous remission in the world by reviewing over 3,500 references, from more than 800 journals in 20 languages, as a step towards expanding our knowledge and understanding of a real phenomenon that occurs, and yet, no one can explain.

Diana Dyer was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a childhood cancer, when she was six months old. She was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 34. She was diagnosed with a second breast cancer ten years after the first. Each cancer was treated by conventional medicine and included combinations of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. But because her cancer kept returning, Diana realized that for her, something other then treatment was necessary to sustain her through a long life. So she considered a healthy recipe for living -- a blend of traditional medicine and alternative methods too -- and she implemented a holistic approach to healing into her personal world. She has not had a recurrence since 1995 -- and she credits this to the changes she's made in her life. She has tipped the scales in her favor, she believes, and she shares her approach with others who want to begin a journey toward recovery and healing after cancer.

"James Birrell was a good kid. He was a cheerful voice on the phone and a diligent penpal who was a big fan of Space ships and railroad trains. When Neuroblastoma took James away, that word was new and ugly." -- Tom Hanks

James Birrell, diagnosed with cancer at the age of three, was a little boy with big dreams. During the eight years before cancer took his life, his family attempted to make each and every one of James dreams a reality. Syd Birrell, father of James, shared updates on his son's progress in his battle with cancer by email. The emails were forwarded around the world, and eventually became a book called, Ya Can't Let Cancer Ruin Your Day - The James Emails.

While James was still alive, the Birrell family desperately looked for anything to save the life of James, including the founding of The James Fund for Neuroblastoma Research at SickKids. Today, it is a leading institution for neuroblastoma research.

James declared Tom Hanks to be his favorite star. I agree with James about Hanks. Hanks is actively involved with the Birrell family and the foundation. About the book, Hanks said, "And yes, some days and nights were so painful that you would not wish them on anyone. But there are other times -- magical days and God-given nights of love, beauty, laughter, and awe -- that will make you wish that you were one of the Birrell family." Hanks is the Honorary Patron of the James Fund to fight neuroblastoma.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, a cancer cluster is defined as a greater-than-expected number of cancer cases that occurs within a group of people in a geographic area over a period of time. Before I was diagnosed with cancer, I never stopped to wonder if I was living in a cancer cluster area. This is a brief list, from 1 in 9, of famous cancer clusters:

Tom’s River, New Jersey: 103 children are part of the nation’s largest cancer cluster. 4,500 drums of toxic liquid were dumped at a nearby landfill.

Woburn, Massachusetts: 21 children diagnosed with leukemia at the time the town’s drinking water was found to be contaminated by a hazardous waste deep-injection well.

Hinkley, California: cancer cluster chromium from the utility winding up in the residents’ well water. This was the site used in the movie, Erin Brockovich.

Oak Park, Illinois, 1989: four children in a small town of 12,000 diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare cancer usually striking 9 in a million, living nearby a toxic stew of coal tars left behind by a manufacturing plant 70 years prior.

Niagara, Canada (“Love Canal”) 1979: A federal report indicates a 1in 10 chance of residents contracting cancer, thousands of toxic chemicals were buried on-site 20 years prior.

Fallon, Nevada 2001: Fourteen cases of leukemia in children in the past three years, adjacent to an old mining area containing arsenic and mercury.

I do not live there now, but I lived in a famous cancer cluster area without realizing it was considered a cancer cluster area. I discovered this information after my breast cancer diagnosis, by accident, while researching breast cancer information. Imagine my initial shock and stunned realization as I began to slowly wonder if it might have been a factor in the development of my disease. It is not likely I will ever have definitive proof of the origin of my cancer. But it does make me wonder. It will always make me wonder.

If you are interested in finding information about the possible dangers where you live, because finding out on your own is possibly the only way you are going to find out about it, check the Environmental Protection Agency's National Priorities List Sites for your state. You can access information about current site listings, proposed site listings, and final site listings.

After much search I  have found the actual site and I  am very impressed with Samantha's story of courage. Her parents have also been very courageous in the face of losing their little baby girl. She was diagnosed with a severe strain of cancer called neuroblastoma last september. Her fight has been months long and she is recovering well. Her tumor was measured at six inches and is now half the size.  We are singing her praises, as well as her strong and dilegent parents. Thanks for posting her inspirational story.  Please take a moment to visit her site.