Tom Synder, host of NBC's The Tomorrow Show passed away on Sunday from leukemia. Synder told the world on his webpage in 2005 that he had been diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

The Tomorrow show aired in 1972 after The Tonight show with Johnny Carson. In 1995 he returned to late night TV starring in The Late Late show with Tom Synder.

His longtime producer and friend Mike Horowicz said "He was a great guy and very talented".

Tags:broadcaster, dies, leukemia, show, snyder, Tom, tomorrow

Researchers from Rutgers University have recently reported that the combination of exercise and caffeine in mice increased apoptosis, a cell's self-destruction, in precancerous cells that were damaged by the sun's ultraviolet-B radiation.

According to Dr. Allan H. Conney, there is a protective effect observed from either exercise or caffeine, but combined, this protection is even more than the sum of the two.

The mice who drank caffeine had a 95 percent increase in apoptosis of damaged cells and the mice who exercised showed a 120 percent increase. However, the mice that did both saw a 400 percent increase in cell death of damaged cells.

Conney expects that this will apply to humans and not just mice, but cautions that it must be tested first and people should continue to use sunscreen.

Tags:caffeine, exercise, skin cancer, SkinCancer

Talk about an oxymoron: U.S. researchers have stated that they're using tobacco plants to derive a drug to prevent cervical cancer. Sounds odd, huh?

Since cervical cancer is caused by diseases that are transmitted by sexual activity (a virus), finding a "vaccine" would go a long way in some countries to decreasing the numbers of females who contract this particular type of cancer.

This tobacco-based vaccine would be used in India initially, according to scientists. Right now, there is no information on which other countries would have a possible drug coming their way based on the tobacco plant.

Tags:cervical cancer, CervicalCancer, tobacco

Included in the feature on cancer this past weekend in the New York Times, some advice from Dr. Richard C. Wender, president of the American Cancer Society. Wender gives advice to cancer patients and their families on how to ensure they are receiving the best treatment available.

Dr. Wender advises taking the time to find the right help and getting more than one opinion. For second opinions, if not first ones, he suggests finding a 'high volume site, ' even if it means traveling. He suggests that patients should ask how many cases like theirs the doctor has seen.

If the operation or therapy is complex, a patient should opt for treatment at the highest-volume center. If the higher-volume center only confirms what the first opinion stated, then treatment at home is a reasonable option however, according to Wender.

Two websites that might help you find expert centers are one from the National Cancer Institute and another from the American College of Surgeons.

For patients without healthcare coverage, the American Cancer Society has a 1-800 number set up to try to assist them (1-800-ACS-2345). While the ACS is able to help 20 percent of such callers get the financial resources they need, they are unable to help 80 percent of the callers at the current time, according to Dr. Wender.

Tags:cancer, financial assistance, FinancialAssistance, finding treatment, FindingTreatment

The New York Times profiled cancer this past weekend in a feature entitled, Cancer Patients, Lost in a Maze of Uneven Care.

Their main article follows Karen Pasqualetto, 35, as she perseveres through a complex maze of physicians and treatments in search of the best care for her stage IV colon cancer, which was diagnosed shortly after the birth of her first child.

The article addresses the uneven quality of cancer care in the U.S. and the difficulty that patients encounter as they attempt to navigate the system in the search for the best care. Healthcare disparities are also addressed, including gaps in access to top cancer care and early detection screenings.

One of the most disturbing parts of the article is a rundown of different cancers and how many patients do not receive the care that gives them the best chance at increasing survival. For example, for pancreatic cancer patients, 38 percent of patients who were eligible for surgery do not receive it. In another example, for breast cancer patients, 15 to 25 percent of women who should have radiation do not and 20 to 30 percent do not take anti-estrogen drugs.

As for Ms. Pasqualetto, she eventually received a liver and colon surgery to remove tumors and has now survived 12 months, far longer than the six month prognosis originally given to her by her first doctor. She credits this good fortune to both her determination and her access to excellent healthcare coverage.

Tags:cancer treatment, CancerTreatment, colon cancer, ColonCancer, healthcare coverage, HealthcareCoverage