Sometimes all it takes is a small gesture to warm the heart of a cancer patient. It doesn't take anything huge. It shouldn't cause any stress or discomfort. And it shouldn't require a whole lot of thought. It should be simple. Simply simple.

A whole lot of small gestures spread a whole lot of cheer my way when I was knee-deep in cancer treatment and needed a lift. Cozy socks kept my feet and my spirits toasty. A package of brownies sweetened my sour days. Flowers brightened my dining room and my state of mind. Books left on my doorstep delivered knowledge and wisdom and a bit of humor to my world.

The options for spreading sunshine are endless. The list of possibilities could go on and on. Here is just a start -- a small list of small gestures that can make a dreary day downright delightful.

Give a hug
Send a handwritten letter
Make a homemade card
Write a poem
Give a journal
Deliver a candle
Make a home-cooked meal
Arrange for food delivery
Babysit children
Play with children
Drive to appointments
Go wig or hat shopping
Visit during chemotherapy sessions
Give something comfy -- socks, pajamas, hat
Do grocery shopping
Accompany to lunch, dinner, movie
Take a walk
Attend church
Have a picnic
Go fishing
Make a donation to favorite charity
Walk, run, volunteer, raise funds in honor of your special someone

Be specific in your gesturing. Trade a comment like "let me know if I can do anything" for "I'm going to come over and wash and clean your car on Saturday." Vague offers are rarely successful -- cancer patients are not likely to recall every general offer they receive and then manage them all into a schedule. It's just too much to consider in the midst of turmoil. But an offer that comes to life right before them is easy. It's effortless. It is truly a gift. A simple, priceless gift.

Sunscreen, designed to protect the user from sun skin damage might actually cause sun skin damage if applied incorrectly and infrequently. University of California Riverside chemists examined the effects of sunscreen lotion on the skin and found that after a period of time, the lotion or cream is absorbed into deeper layers of the skin. If more sunscreen is not applied to block ultraviolet radiation (UV), the sunscreen that has been absorbed into the deeper layers of skin creates additional oxidative damage as UV rays are able to penetrate through to the deeper layers where the sunscreen has been absorbed. When sunscreen is applied often, this does not happen.

There is only one practical solution at this time and that is to apply sunscreen lotion or cream often, about every two hours or after sweating or swimming. Researchers suggest another potential solution would be for sunscreen makers to mix sunscreen with antioxidants because antioxidants have been shown to reduce UV-induced damage to the skin. UC has published an in-depth explanation with photos of effects to the skin following the sunscreen experiments here.

I hesitate to bring this up, as the hot dog is a bonafide American icon, associated so closely as it is to the all-American pastimes of baseball and backyard barbeques -- and to sacrilegiously make the suggestion or malign the hot dog on any level I realize puts me at risk of having my patriotism brought into question.

Still, knowing this, I have chosen to throw pickle relish caution to the wind in the name of science and better health.

According to University of Nebraska researchers (you note I point directly to the researchers as the originators of this news) some hot dogs might cause DNA mutation and increase colon cancer risks. Not all hotdogs, but they cannot tell you at this time which hotdogs are a cancer menace.

Hot dogs do not stand alone as culprits to cancer. Salted dried fish and soy sauce have been identified as potential offenders. But I am not nearly as skittish in mentioning the latter two.

The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council estimates that more than seven billion hot dogs will be eaten by Americans between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Statistics estimate the breakdown of hot dog consumption per American is 60 hot dogs a year.

Next? Brushing up on my French.

Sunscreen products containing Mexoryl SX or ecamsule, an ingredient designed to block the sun's harmful UVA rays, have been sold in Canada and Europe for over ten years, but have not been available here.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently approved the over-the-counter sale of L'Oreal Anthelios SX sunscreen product containing ecamsule to consumers in the US.

While UVB rays are known to cause sunburn, UVA rays penetrate deeper into the skin and are associated with an increased risk for basal and squamous cell cancers and melanoma skin cancer. Anthelios SX is made by the French cosmetics company L'Oreal. Mexoryl SX is owned by L'Oreal, and is only available in L'Oreal products.

Sunscreens might provide some protection from the harmful rays of the sun, and should be used when going out in the sun. Still your best bet is to shade yourself when spending any length of time in the sun and staying out of the sun during the peak hours of 10 AM to 4 PM when sun can cause the most skin damage.

The Breast Cancer Campaign, a leading organization working to improve diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, towards breast cancer prevention, and ultimately a breast cancer cure, is hosting the BIG BBQ as one of their fundraisers for continuing research and services. BIG BBQ, with the support of the National BBQ Association, Good Food Live host Jeni Barnett, and celebrity chefs, provides BBQ recipes, tips and facts to help you become a part of the BIG BBQ campaign.

From the Breast Cancer Campaign, here are a few top barbeque facts:

• BBQ is now the summer home leisure activity in half the households owning a BBQ grill. It has evolved into a sophisticated, al-fresco alternative to the traditional dinner party.
• 14 percent of all households have two BBQ grills and eight percent have three or more BBQ grills.
• Although charcoal is still the most popular fuel, around 63 per cent, this is changing fast in favor of gas.
• BBQ is now becoming the regular alternative summer meal-cooking format.
• BBQ is no longer male dominated -- 51 percent of men now tangle with the tongs, while 49 percent of women go for the grill.
  

A few basic barbeque tips include:

• Always keep raw and cooked meats separate from each other.
• In very hot weather throw away any barbequed food left out for more than an hour.
• Never part-cook on a barbeque and finish cooking later.
  

A few of the featured mouth-watering celebrity chef barbeque recipes are:

• Aldo Zilli's BBQ mackerel with lemon oil
• Brian Turner's chicken burger with feta and sundried tomatoes
• Clodagh McKenna's baked white fish with lemon and dill
• Jekka McVicar's marinated chicken
• Lucy Wyndham-Read's old-fashioned homemade lemonade
• Peter Gordon's baba ganoush
• Lotte's Summer Pudding
  

To find out how to take part in the Breast Cancer Campaign's BIG BBQ, and host a BIG BBQ of your own with family and friends, visit What is the BIG BBQ?

Summertime, watermelon, and the 4th of July all go hand and hand. This fruit seems to be a tradition in almost every back yard BBQ on this holiday. In July this fruit is abundant in every roadside fruit stand, farmers market and grocery store. Watermelon contains the phytochemical lycopene, one of our colorful disease preventing cartenoids that is most known for in tomatoes. That is why they are both red. Studies have shown that a cup and a half of watermelon contains about 9 to 13 milligrams of lycopene. On average, watermelon has about 40 percent more lycopene than raw tomatoes.

The vegetable Jicama has a crunchy texture like that of water chestnuts but with a sweet taste. It is easy to just peel, slice and serve raw. It is a good source of vitamin C as well as dietary fiber aiding in fighting colon cancer.

I like to use these two naturally sweet items in a nutritional salad packed with vitamins, taste, fiber and cancer fighting lycopene.  Here is my recipe.

Vicki's Watermelon & Jicama Salad
1 head Romain lettuce.
1 head radichio
4 tangerines peeled and segmented
1 piece jicama, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices about 2 inches long
1 watermelon   
1 pack feta cheese
1/4 cup dried cranberries 
1/4 cup toasted sunflower seeds

Vicki's Citrus Vinaigrette
4 tablespoons fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Whisk together all ingredients.

Tear lettuce and radichio apart rinse well and shake dry. Lightly tear apart into bite size pieces and place the leaves around on individual salad plates so that the texture and colors of the salad are mixed. Scoop out 5 to 6 balls of the watermelon with a melon baller and place onto the center of the salad plates. Then place wedges of the jicama and tangerines around the watermelon. Sprinkle with cranberries, feta cheese, and toasted sunflower seeds. Lightly drizzle with citrus vinaigrette and serve. Will serve 4 to 6 depending on how large you like your salads.

It's almost summer. Who wants to be stuck inside, in the kitchen, toiling away over the stove. The backyard barbeque is the obvious solution to enjoying the good weather and feeding the hungry troops. The National Foundation for Cancer Research, NFCR, features a new cancer prevention recipe each month, and this month it is Grilled Herbed Vegetables. Most vegetables offer cancer prevention, but when you think power-packed cancer prevention vegetables, think color. The richer the color, the more nutrients. With little preparation, grilling vegetables are easy, and a healthy addition, to the backyard barbeque dinner.

According to NFCR, all you need to do is toss and coat vegetables -- that have been cut into bite-sized chunks -- with a little olive oil, garlic, fresh basil and sea salt. Or you can add sprigs of rosemary. Place the vegetables on heavy-duty aluminum foil, seal the foil to form a packet, and place on the grill rack directly over medium-hot heat about ten minutes, turn packet over and grill another 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Some of the vegetables you might want to include are asparagus; broccoli; carrots; cherry tomatoes; corn on the cob; eggplant; mushrooms; red onion wedges; sliced yellow, red, or green sweet pepper; hot peppers; squash; and/or zucchini.