Ovarian cancer is difficult to detect. There are no great screening tests to pick up on its presence in the body, and by the time symptoms appear, the disease has often progressed into an advanced stage. But a ray of light has recently emerged in the study of ovarian cancer -- and it could help in the prevention and early detection of this deadly disease.

Think about this, from the April 2007 issue of Woman's Day magazine:

Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine have identified a simple checklist of six symptoms associated with an increased risk of the disease and three of them -- if they occur at least 12 times per month and are present for less than one year -- were present 57 percent of the time in a study of women with early-stage disease.

And the three symptoms are: abdominal and pelvic pain, bloating and difficulty eating, and feeling full quickly.

If you experience these problems, especially if they are frequent or new, contact your doctor because identifying ovarian cancer quickly is key. In its early stages, the cure rate is 90 percent. But for advanced cancer, it's only 20 percent.

One out of three Americans will get cancer before they die. Who is at the highest risk?

Dr. David Nanus, an oncologist who has been treating cancer patients for over twenty years, says that "If you're obese or overweight, you have an increased incidence in a number of cancers". Nanus also tells CBS news that someone with a family history, someone who smokes, has a high fat diet and does not exercise are in the highest risk category for developing cancer in their lifetime.

According to the American Cancer Institute about one third of cancer deaths in 2006 were related to nutrition, physical inactivity and being overweight or obese -- and could have been prevented.

Nanus also says that "The biggest problem is the fear factor. People are so afraid of being diagnosed with cancer they wait. Even waiting three months can mean a difference between life and death.

Elizabeth Edwards' breast cancer recurrence has the disease once again dominating newspapers, magazines, television programs, and conversations.

Just two days ago, I heard a run-down of facts about breast cancer. They were shared to raise awareness, and while I was already aware of most of them, it's still quite sobering to hear some of the statistics that surround a disease that lands in the laps of more than 200,000 American women every year.

Think about these -- three powerful truths that happen to stick in my mind at this very moment:

The highest risk of breast cancer belongs to those older than 60.

Nearly 85 percent of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history of the disease.

And tragically, every three minutes, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer.

My blood looked good. My weight is normal. My temperature was 98.2. My blood pressure was perfect. And the physical exam conducted by my oncologist revealed that for another three-month stretch, I have survived cancer.

There are other exams ahead in the next few months -- a breast MRI, a mammogram, an ultrasound, a follow-up with my radiation oncologist -- but mostly, my life revolves around the every-three-month visit with my medical oncologist. He's the one who plotted the course of my treatment, responds to my physical and emotional ups and downs, and checks my every piece and part. He is the one who will declare my remission in five years, if warranted. He is the one who told me today I am doing very well.

And for the next three months, I will assume I am just that -- very well. And my hope is that on May 21, when I depart his office once again, I am able to report that not one thing has changed.

Sierra Vista located in Arizona has had at least a dozen children that have developed leukemia since 1997 and at least two have died of it. This is nearly triple the childhood leukemia rate expected in a town of 40,000 during that time period. A three year study by federal health officials said that they detected no toxic exposures that could have caused the illnesses.

Beverly Kingsley, an epidemiologist with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated " We don't know why this cluster occurred. We really wish we had the answer, but we don't"

In 2004, the CDC decided to draw and analyze samples of blood, urine and cheek swabs from the surviving patients and their families. They tested them for 128 different contaminants including toxic chemicals, metals, pesticides and volatile organic compounds. They compared these samples with healthy children from Sierra Vista. The samples also underwent genetic testing.

Environmental toxins have long been suspected as a trigger of leukemia, only one though, benzene has ever been proven to cause it. Some of the town people feel they have attended too many funerals and feel that something has to be going on. The townspeople also said in a meeting that the CDC held that the study did not include enough patients, didn't span a long enough period of time and also didn't include environmental testing for toxins.

Results from the largest study of men with prostate cancer treated with high-dose, intensity modulated radiation (IMRT) show that 89 percent of men were disease free eight years later. Patients were treated at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and classified into prognostic risk groups. After an average of eight years, 89 percent of the men in the favorable risk group were disease-free and none of the men in any group developed secondary cancers as a result of the radiation treatments.

This report, published in the October 2006 issue of The Journal of Urology, is the first description of long term outcomes for prostate cancer patients using IMRT. Intensity modulated radiation is an improved form of three-dimensional conformal radiation (3D-CRT). IMRT uses enhanced planning treatment software that more precisely targets the prostate, allowing the beam of radiation to deliver a high dose to the tumor target while sparing the adjacent bladder and rectum from exposure to the higher amounts of radiation.

Dr. Michael J. Zelefsky, Chief of the Brachytherapy Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, said "This study confirms that we can improve patients' quality of life by reducing the side effects of radiotherapy while maintaining disease-free survival."

Eli Lilly and Company has launched a major clinical trial evaluating ALIMTA (pemetrexed for injection) in extensive stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC), a devastating and rapidly spreading form of lung cancer. SCLC is sometimes called oat cell cancer because small cell lung cancer cells resemble oat grains. Patients with SCLC are staged according to a two-stage system, being diagnosed as having either limited stage disease or extensive stage disease. About 65 to 70 percent of patients with SCLC are diagnosed with extensive stage disease and the current two year survival rate is less than 10 percent.

The GALES trial, Global Analysis of Pemetexed in SCLC Extensive Stage, is a Phase III trial that will enroll 1,820 patients with extensive stage disease. The study's primary objective is to compare the overall survival after treatment with pemetrexed plus carboplatin verses the current standard treatment of etoposide plus carboplatin.

More details on the study design and information on global recruitment sites may be found at www.clinicaltrials.gov and www.lillytrials.com or by calling 1-877-CTLILLY.

I took my boys yesterday for a tour of the University of Florida's Department of Entomology and Nematology. Translation for these little boys -- ages five and three -- involves one simple word. Bugs. They love bugs, hunt for bugs, capture bugs, and reluctantly set them free because I coax them into allowing these itty bitty creatures to continue living with their "mommies and daddies." I have a soft spot for all living beings -- bugs included.

We learned some crazy facts about bugs yesterday -- insects is the proper term really. We learned there is one cockroach that can live for seven days without its head. We learned there are two types of Madagascar cockroaches living in a lab in the very same building we visited that if set free, would reproduce so quickly they would become a major pest problem in the state of Florida. And we learned that of all animals on this planet, most are insects. But not only did we learn some crazy facts, we -- well, Joey -- shared a crazy fact too.

Joey is five years old. He is the boy who remembers much of my breast cancer journey. He is the one who helped shave my head, the one who thought a banana would make my sick tummy feel better. He's the one who would blurt out to people we never knew very well, "My mommy is bald," the one who asked me just last night if the metal thing -- my port -- was still in my chest. When I told him it's gone, he jumped up and announced, "Yeah, it's gone!" Cancer is one of many vocabulary words housed in Joey's brain. And sometimes the word comes up unexpectedly, in strange contexts, in surprising ways. Like today.

Our bug tour guide told us that in Africa, mosquitoes transmit diseases that kill millions of people. But those with sickle cell anemia are immune to the deadly diseases due to their compromised red blood cells that somehow fend off disease. This fact prompted Joey to share with the guide, "Did you know when people have cancer, there are bugs that can kill the cancer?" Our guide listened to this crazy fact and said in a kid-friendly way, "No, I did not know that. Who told you that?" Joey told her, "I don't remember but someone told me."

I am not sure what prompted Joey to make this announcement. Perhaps he was trying to one-up the tour guide, to sound like an expert on one of his favorite subjects. Perhaps his imagination was in overdrive and he blurted out the best story he could offer. Perhaps he jumbled up a story he had heard on the topic of cancer. And perhaps he is just simply hopeful that one day, bugs will help cure cancer. And wouldn't that be nice -- a simple mosquito comes along, pierces the skin, and poof, cancer is gone.

My cancer journey would not be nearly as interesting, as enlightening, as tender if Joey was not along with me for the ride. He keeps me busy and keeps my spirits up. He keeps me grounded and keeps life simple. Best of all -- he keeps me laughing.

The Lung Cancer Alliance -- the only national non-profit organization dedicated entirely to lung cancer patient support and advocacy -- asked pulmonary clinical nurse specialist Donna Wilson to help educate the lung cancer community about healthy breathing. Wilson agreed and her breathing tips, available on podcast, are intended to relieve shortness of breath related to pain or activity. Her three breathing techniques -- detailed here -- are simple, easy-to-understand, and truly relaxing.

Before beginning this series of breathing exercises, stop whatever you are doing and sit down or lean against a wall.

• Place chin to your chest to relax your neck muscles. Breathe 10 short bursts of air in and out of your lips. As you expel air, neck and chest muscles should relax.
• Place chin to your chest. Breathe three times in through your nose and out through your mouth.
• Place chin to your chest. Close your mouth, and breathe four times in and out only through your nose.
  

After completing these exercises, lift your head, breathe normally, and let your shoulders relax. In a few minutes, your entire body should start to relax -- and shortness of breath will resolve.

I don't have lung cancer -- but I do have moments of anxiety and panic. So I plan to save these tips. And I plan to use them. And I plan to share them. Because we all can benefit from a dose of relaxation.

Of all the gifts I received during my cancer treatment, I never did receive boxing gloves. And I've never even considered giving them as gifts to loved ones who are sick. I usually stick with fuzzy socks -- that's my traditional put-your-feet-up comfort gift. But I like the idea of boxing gloves. I like that they represent the fight cancer brings out in us. And I like that two sisters came up with this gift idea for their mother during her cancer battle. Complete with signatures from family and friends, they presented boxing gloves to their mom, Gerrell, who loved looking at her symbol of strength. And she was thrilled with all the personal messages that reminded her each day of everyone who stood in her corner. Although Gerrell has since passed away from cancer, the boxing glove idea lives on.

After their mom died, Gerrell's daughters began a company called My Knockout where they sell boxing gloves with signature pens, t-shirts, gift baskets, and more -- and they contribute a portion of all profits to the American Cancer Society. They say it's takes just three rounds to pursue this gift option for anyone faced with a physical or emotional struggle -- just purchase My Knockout boxing gloves, have friends and loved ones sign the gloves with encouraging messages, and give the gloves to your fighters.

Gerrell's daugthers, who also keep a My Knockout blog, say life is truly worth fighting for. So put your gloves up and fight.

Thanks Sheree for sharing your story!

"The normal response of prostate cells when male hormones are blocked is cell death," said George Kulik, assistant professor of cancer biology and senior researcher at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. "The cancer cells find a way to resist the treatment and we wanted to discover the mechanism."

Researchers have discovered the canny and shrewd way prostate cancer cells manage to defy death and become resistant to hormone treatment. The prostate cancer cells are using three separate pathways to send signals to cancer cells by inactivating a protein, BAD, meant to cause cell death.

If animal and human studies further prove what the researchers have discovered, new drug therapies could be developed to keep BAD active and doing its job in helping to destroy prostate cancer cells.

Living Fully With and Beyond Cancer is a three-day conference held each year for cancer patients, family members and caregivers. During the conference, there will be six wellness workshops, 28 sessions on specific cancer topics, two patient-caregiver couples sharing their experiences and a medical panel who will discuss the latest cancer research. All cancer survivors and caregivers are invited to attend, regardless of where they received cancer treatments.

This year, for the 18th Living Fully With and Beyond Cancer Conference, Sex and the City television actor Evan Handler, an acute leukemia cancer survivor, will be the opening keynote speaker. When Handler was diagnosed with cancer 20 years ago, it was considered incurable. He became a cancer survivor and author of Time on Fire: My Comedy of Terrors.

Leslie Mouton, breast cancer survivor and news anchor and reporter at KSAT-12 in San Antonio, Texas, will also the closing speaker. She will open the Beth Sanders Moore Workshop for Young Breast Cancer Survivors.

The theme of this year's conference is Let the Sun Shine In. The conference takes place from September 7-9, 2006, at the Houston Marriott Westchase in Houston, Texas. Attendance is limited and scholarships are available. For detailed information about the conference, visit the Living Fully With and Beyond Cancer Conference website.

I told my little guy Danny today that he and his big brother would be going to their Nana's house so I could go to the doctor -- for an echo-cardiogram to test for possible heart damage due to Herceptin therapy for breast cancer. Danny -- age three -- asked me, Why you keep doing that? This is the same question he keeps asking -- because he wants to know why I keep going to the doctor. I give him the same answer each time -- that I need to keeping seeing doctors so I can stay healthy. He always seems satisfied with this response, although he continues to ask the same question. He either forgets that he's already asked or he forgets my response or he finds comfort in my routine answer -- or perhaps he is completely aware of his repeat question and just wants me to provide a better explanation. Which is hard to do -- in a three-year-old kind of way -- when my response is the best I've got. I keep going to the doctor in search of health. It's simple. And fortunately, so is Danny -- simple in a young and innocent and pure way. And Joey is too.

Right after my exchange with Danny, Joey -- age five -- said to me, Won't you be glad when you don't need to go to the doctor and you can be healthy all by yourself? Yep, I told him and then realized that these boys have a definite pulse on my cancer journey -- almost two years after it started. They wonder about it and try to figure it out and predict how I must feel. And through it all, I am happy they are involved with me in this intricate adventure. And I am concerned at the same time that what they do know may cause them some stress, some worry, some uncertainty about our future together. My hope is that this experience in their young lives strengthens them, humbles them, prepares them for a future that is not always as simple as the responses I give them about an illness that is so complex. But when it comes down to really simple terms -- that we all can appreciate -- I have my boys and they have me and for today, that is all that matters. Well, that and the fact that my echo-cardiogram today revealed that my heart is just fine.

There is valid concern regarding cancer-causing chemical pesticides used around the home and in the backyard vegetable garden. For the garden, many pests are drawn to unhealthy soils and plants, and as a result, the need for pesticide application increases to control damage done by garden invaders. However, if you keep your garden healthy, and implement the practice of companion planting, you might be able to reduce your use of toxic chemical pesticides to zero. Companion planting is the practice of growing plants close to each other that utilizes each plant's ability to protect the other plant by attracting beneficial insects and repelling harmful ones. Gardening organic is a satisfying cancer prevention way to get fresh vegetables to your dinner table.

For example, the Three Sisters gardening practice of North America Native Americans is organic and practical. Corn, squash, and climbing beans are grown close together. The corn provides a natural pole for the beans to climb, the beans provide needed nutrients for the soil and the squash acts as a spreading ground cover choking out weeds and protecting the soil from drying out too fast. A fish is planted in the soil to provide a natural fertilizer.

Yayasan IDEP Foundation offers a comprehensive companion planting chart, including an extensive list of tips on natural insect repellants for ants, aphids, cabbage butterfly, mosquitoes, moths, red spider, fleas, flies, slugs, snails and more -- to use around the home and to grow in your garden and yard. Available as a free PDF document, you can download the Companion Planting Chart here.