If clinical trials go well, a new drug simulating the effects of normal sunlight and increasing the life expectancy of prostate cancer patients, could be available in 2009.

The drug, Asentar, provided levels of vitamin D between 50 and 100 times higher than levels delivered by the sun and could double life expectancy from nine to 18 months for those taking the pills. Absent would be any of the consequences associated with such an overdose.

"An extension of nine months would be very significant in my view," said Nick James of the University of Birmingham. "If the results of the phase III trial are as good as those of the phase II trial, that would be significant."

Details about this study can be found in the journal Chemistry & Industry.

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.

Women with advanced breast cancer were found to have lower levels of vitamin D when compared to women with early-stage breast cancer, leading researchers to conclude that vitamin D might play a role in slowing the progression of breast cancer.

Imperial College London researchers are not certain if the lower level of vitamin D found in women with advanced breast cancer is the result of the cancer, or one of the factors promoting the progression of the breast cancer, only that there appears to be a connection.

This adds to the body of knowledge that women living in northern climates, where there is less year-round sun exposure, are more prone to developing breast cancer.

One of the natural ways to get vitamin D is from exposure to sunlight. Also, women can get vitamin D from fortified milk and dairy products, cod liver oil and fatty fish, such as salmon. Previous research has indicated that vitamin D might play a role in the prevention in a number of cancers. For related information into research conclusions regarding vitamin D:

• Fatty fish offers women cancer prevention
• Vitamin D: supplement aids in reducing risk of cancer
• Vitamin D: lack of summer sun increases risk for 16 cancers

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute researchers have discovered a gene, NEDD9, that is present in more than one-third of melanoma skin cancer cases that have spread, that does not appear in melanoma skin cancer that has not spread. Melanoma isn't a big skin cancer killer on its own, it is the spreading of cancer from the original skin cancer tumor that makes melanoma deadly.

Using transgenic mice and inducing melanoma, the researchers were able to identify the NEDD9 gene in the mouse tumors and establish that the same gene in humans drives the spread of melanoma tumors. The researchers believe that this identification process can lead to the identification of other novel genes involved in cancer.

"This is a demonstration of the principle, that the mouse has similar genomic changes that are important for cancer, and we can use the mouse model as a filter to help us identify which gene is responsible for the cancer development and metastasis," said Dr. Lynda Chin, an associate professor of dermatology at Harvard Medical School.

Wake me when the sun comes back. If you live in the northern states, October through March can be a day-after-day dismal parade of gray sky. By about February, there are some of us who have pulled the covers over our collective heads and seem to have trouble mustering any energy to get up and get going. It's depressing. Whereas, when the sun shines, the mood lifts and the energy level increases. One remedy for combating the natural gloom of the winter months is to visit a tanning salon. Tanning salons are big business and perhaps being bronzy-brown isn't the only reason people are really using them. Obviously, natural or artificial, the sun has a real effect on our sense of well-being. But why is that?

Researchers, in attempting to discover the lure of tanning beds -- and why -- despite repeated warnings of the skin cancer dangers associated with tanning bed use, there are people who still visit tanning salons on a frequent basis, believe they have found the answer in addiction. Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center researcher explained that the results of a study on tanning bed use showed that some tanners actually experience withdrawal symptoms when the feel-good chemicals stimulated by exposure to UV rays are blocked. Researchers administered a drug that blocks the effects of pleasure-inducing endorphins and other opioids that are naturally released by the brain and which have been associated with the UV light of a tanning bed. The results? At higher doses of the blocking medication, frequent tanners were less inclined to tan, and half of them reported nausea or jitteriness. In a previous study, these same researchers found that people using UV tanning beds were more relaxed afterward than people who used beds that did not have UV light.

If you understand addiction as merely a way to self-medicate in a misguided attempt to feel better when you aren't feeling good, then the tanning bed addiction theory makes sense. Until they can address and solve the problem behind the problem of tanning bed use, then all the skin cancer awareness campaigns will be in vain.

What the sun has to teach us about cancer prevention is starting to sound like simple common sense -- excess and extreme of any kind is unhealthy. Sun worshippers who spend hours in the hot summer sun are at significant risk for skin cancer. People who spend most of their time indoors because of lifestyle or choice, are at greater risk of developing a number of diseases from the lack of sun exposure, including cancer.

According to the Australasian College of Dermatologists and the Cancer Council Australia, UVB exposure in small amounts is essential to good health, as UVB exposure is how the body manufactures vitamin D. In the summer as little as five minutes a day exposure to face, arms, and hands will provide the necessary sun exposure needed. In winter, when UVB rays are weakest, an accumulated exposure of two to three hours a week is needed. Even with that, we need to keep in mind that as we age our body loses the ability to synthesize vitamin D the way it did when we were younger, and vitamin D supplementation in capsule form is recommended. Other sources of Vitamin D include fish-liver oils, egg yolk, fortified milk, bread and cereals. The Australasian College of Dermatologists and the Cancer Council Australia Risks and Benefits of Sun Exposure report is available as a PDF document. So, do what your mother told you to do when you were young -- go out and get some fresh air and sunshine -- just not as much when UVB rays are the strongest.