Help Little Sophie In Her Battle Against Stage 4 Bone Cancer

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Movember – Health and cooking tips to fight cancer: BBQ Grilling Meat

I just found this health related video on YouTube … and thought you might enjoy it!

youtube.com/watch?v=crXgDWxWjpQ%3Ff%3Dvideos%26app%3Dyoutube_gdata

Nutritionist Beth Ginsberg shows you how grilling meat can affect your prostate. Grow a moustache in November to raise money for the fight against prostate cancer. For more information on Movember visit www.movember.com

Tell us what you think about this video in the comments below, or in the Battling For Health Community Forum!
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Gear up for Charity Runs This Spring

I am getting kind of impatient with this heart problem of mine. The sooner my heart rhythm is back to normal, the sooner I can train. There are several local charity runs I am interested in but can’t register until I am sure I’d be fit enough to run.

Here are a couple for charity runs in your area you might want to join in.

Fresh Air Fund seeks racers for the NYC Half-Marathon

Here is an appeal from one of my favorite not-for-profit organizations. The Fresh Air Fund still has some spots available for runners on our Fresh Air Fund-Racers team for the NYC Half-Marathon this coming March 20^th.

Ready to be a part of one of the world’s best road races? Join The Fresh Air Fund-Racers on March 20th, 2011! The amazing 13.1-mile course takes you through beautiful Central Park, action-packed Times Square and ends with breathtaking finish-line views of the New York City harbor. More than 11,000 runners, of all ages and abilities, finished the NYC Half-Marathon last year, and we are so proud of our very own 2010 Fresh Air Fund-Racers who ran and raised $100,000 for us!

We are calling all runners and Fresh Air Fund supporters to come out and either challenge themselves to run the race or join our cheering squad. The Fresh Air Fund provides runners with guaranteed entry in exchange for fundraising before race day. Entries are limited – please get in touch soon! Please email kbrinkerhoff@freshair.org or call (212) 897-8890.

March for Babies

The March of Dimes is a non-profit organization advocating for pre-term babies and their families. It organizes several charity walks (March for Babies) each year. You can join as an individual, as a team (family, company, group of friends, etc.).

“When you walk in March for Babies, you give hope to the more than half a million babies born too soon each year. The money you raise supports programs in your community that help moms have healthy, full-term pregnancies. And it funds research to find answers to the problems that threaten our babies. We’ve been walking since 1970 and have raised an incredible $2 billion to benefit all babies.”

Here are some for my friends in Britain:

Walk the Walk

The 2011 26.2 Moonwalk for Breast Cancer in London is scheduled for 14 May, followed by another one in Edinburg on 11 June. Then there is the London Sun Walk on 24 July.

Race for Life for Cancer Research

Race for Life is UK’s largest female-only event. You can do 5k or 10k and race money for Cancer Research UK.
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Fundraising for dementia research: a million for a million

When you think about companies giving to charity, you wouldn’t think of a budget airline company as being among the generous, right? Wrong! easyJet, one of Europe’s budget carrier has just announced its pledge of raising one million pounds for charity. The beneficiary of this corporate generosity is no other than the Alzheimer’s Society of the UK. The fund raising drive is called “a million for a million”, a million pounds for a million people who will suffer from some form of dementia in the next ten years.

According to Andy Harrison, CEO of easyJet

‘I was shocked to learn that one million people will develop dementia in the next 10 years. That’s why we have committed to raising a million for a million – one million pounds to help the million people who will be facing dementia.

Dementia is not a natural part of ageing but it is often still viewed in these terms, meaning it doesn’t get the attention it deserves. The government only invests 2% of its medical research budget on dementia. We call on the government to boost research funding and make this condition a priority.’

Hre’s how the fundraising will work: Passengers on board all easyJet flights will be asked to donate their spare or excess foreign currency to dementia research. A collection bag will probably be given out to each passenger and collected just before landing. In addition, the Alzheimer’s Society will receive a percentage of the sales of scratch cards sold on easyJet flights. Collection starts this summer.

I think this is a splendid idea to raise money for charity. Those of you who are travelling international would know the hassle of different currencies and all those small change that clutters your purse. This is a great way of getting rid of them. And if you have more to spare, you can give more, too.

Neil Hunt, CEO of Azheimer’s Society UK says

‘easyJet has set a fantastic example by boosting funding for dementia. Charities, companies and the government can all work towards the goal of defeating dementia. We look forward to the forthcoming Dementia Research Summit and hope to see the development of an ambitious plan that drives real change.’

Thank you and happy landings.

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Running for a cause, running for the cure

It’s running season again. Nowadays, I go for family-oriented runs. I have to because I run with my two six-year old boys. Yet, there was a time when I used to run for charity. For a cause.

I used to regularly participate in the Susan Komen Run for the Cure held annually in Frankfurt, Germany. I remember the first time I participated in 2001. The guest of honor was no other than the Kenyan marathon runner Tegla Loroupe. Somewhere along the way, I had to take a break from running due to pregnancy and motherhood but had the chance to run again in 2005. This time the German long jumper Olympic winner Heike Drechsler was the guest of honor. I still have the T-shirt from that event.

Unfortunately, we had to leave Frankfurt and move to Switzerland the following year. And here in Zurich where I now live with my family, there are no cancer-oriented runs. Or maybe there is actually, but I haven’t been looking hard enough.

Anyway, I was sure envious when fellow runner Kate (“SwissKate”) flew back to London a few weeks ago to “Walk the Walk” – the London Moon Walk on May 15.

 Walk the Walk came into being 12 years ago when just 13 women Power Walked the New York City Marathon in their bras to raise money  and awareness for breast cancer. What started out as a one-off fundraising event, has blossomed into a thriving multi-million pound charity, raising to date in excess of £48 million for vital breast cancer causes.

Despite its US origins, Walk the Walk is very popular in the UK. There are basically 2 types of walks, the nightime walk (MoonWalks) and the daytime walk (SunWalk). Here are some of the upcoming walks:

• 20 June 2009, MoonWalk, Edinburgh, Scotland
• 5 July 2009, SunWalk, Bristol, UK
• 19 July 2009, SunWalk, Newcastle, UK

The walkers are also participating in major runner events in Germany and the US:

• 20 September 2009, Berlin Marathon
• 1 November 2009, New York Marathon

It’s not that I am a fast runner – I’m not. I simply like running or walking. And running or walking for a cause makes it even better.

So if ever you have the chance to run or walk for a cause, do it. It doesn’t have to be for cancer. It could be a run for the benefit of AIDS or the environment, or any cause that you believe in.

Someday, when my kids are bigger, I’ll do such runs again. Promise.

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News from the cancer side November 28

MAKE TODAY A PINK FRIDAY!!!

News from the retail side

Pink Friday
The retailer giant Systemax is painting Black Friday Pink for the second year in a row. Systemax owns CompUSA and TigerDirect which sell electronic products. CompUSA alone has 24 retail stores all over the US. Here’s how Systemax plans to turn Black Friday into Pink:

• The company guarantees a minimum donation of $100,000 from CompUSA and TigerDirect.
• Customers will have the opportunity to donate $1, $5, $10 or $20 on top of their in-store or on-site purchase to Susan G. Komen for the Cure
• A live webcast will be available on www.CompUSA.com and www.TigerDirect.com from 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. in which limited quantities of products will be sold at 50 percent off their list price, with the full proceeds of the sale products going directly to Komen.

Systemax raised $200,000 on Pink Friday last year. It hopes to reach the $250,000 target this year.

News from the clinical trial side

Studies show novel device may enhance chemotherapy treatment in brain tumors
The company NovoCure is conducting trials to test the Novo-TTF, a medical device that uses low intensity alternating electric fields to kill cancer cells. TTF has been shown to enhance the antitumor effects of standard chemotherapy, thus helping in slowing down disease progression and extending survival. The device is non-invasive and the only side effects observed is skin irritation (contact dermatitis) associated with the electrodes delivering the electric fields.

News from the statistics side

Annual report to the nation finds declines in cancer incidence and death rates
Something to be thankful about at Thanksgiving: the latest figures from the US cancer organizations are in snd the news are a bit cheering – cancer incidence and mortalities are on the decline in both men and women.

News from the outreach program side

Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, Mrs. Laura Bush Welcome Panama to Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness
Last week, outgoing First Lady Laura Bush was an honoured guest in the initiation of Panama into the Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research of the Americas. Other partners are Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico.

“The Partnership is a locally initiated and locally distributed project to increase access to early detection and to reduce breast cancer deaths through improved awareness, increased clinical resources and more funding for scientific research. Komen for the Cure provides the global grassroots network and educational resources to the partnership, and The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center provides the medical expertise. The Institute of International Education’s San Francisco office (IIE) brings regional training and management experience and serves as the point of contact for the organizations in Panama. “

Photo credit: photo.xchng