FameCrawler : pancreatic cancer

Apple CEO Steve Jobs Takes Medical Leave

sweatpantsmom — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 00:05:00 GMT

Amidst ongoing speculation about his health, Apple Inc. co-founder and Chief Executive Steve Jobs said Wednesday he is taking a medical leave of absence until the end of June. Job's announcement comes just a week after he assured investors and employees that his recent weight loss was caused by what he called a 'treatable hormone deficiency.'

In 2004 Jobs revealed that he had undergone successful surgery to treat a very rare form of pancreatic cancer, but rumors persisted about his health. Concerns about his condition intensified after Apple announced in December that Jobs would not make his annual keynote address at this year's Macworld conference in San Francisco.

Jobs, 53, said in a letter last week that he would remain as CEO despite his condition, and said he had already started the "relatively simple and straightforward" treatment for the problem.

But in an e-mail to employees Wednesday, Jobs appeared to back down from his previous statements. "During the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought," he wrote.

"Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well...In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June."

The illness, not to mention the ongoing public and media speculation must be difficult for Jobs' wife and kids. Let's hope the next few months give him and his family the chance to deal with his illness and heal in private.

Source

Patrick Swayze To Adopt?

trix — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 15:06:00 GMT

Patrick Swayze dreams of being a father. He has pancreatic cancer, but he and his wife Lisa still want to make his dreams of becoming a father come true.

Patrick and Lisa have been married for 33 years (that's an eternity in Hollywood) and during that time Lisa has suffered two miscarriages. The couple are turning to adoption to fill the empty spot in their lives.

Sources say, "It has been so tough for Patrick and Lisa. But she didn't want to wait until it could be too late to go through with an adoption. Lisa promised through tears she would make him a father. Lisa sees a son as perhaps one final magical gift for the man she adores. And she is absolutely set on naming the boy Patrick. The biggest drawback is time. But he will fight until his last breath to stay with her and if he has a son to hold, he will move heaven and earth to beat his illness."

Oh my, I know that he is in the fight of his life against cancer and it's commendable that he still has so much love to give to a child.

Source | Photo

Jennifer Garner Stands Up To Cancer

Karl Erikson — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:03:00 GMT

The stars showed up in force Friday night for the multi-network special "Stand Up To Cancer." The celebrity-studded fundraiser was all about raising awareness and money for cancer research. We've all lost someone we know to cancer. I made a donation in memory of my grandmother and stepfather. And while I was a tad disappointed that I didn't get to talk to Jennifer Garner and her baby bump on the phone bank, I suppose the bigger picture prevails.

You can still call this week or visit the Stand Up 2 Cancer site and make a donation. There are some amazing and promising new testing procedures out there. It'd be wonderful to see an end to cancer in this lifetime.

Source | Stand Up 2 Cancer

Related Post

Superstars Stand Up To Cancer

Superstars Stand Up For Cancer!

Karl Erikson — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:28:00 GMT

Who among us has not been touched by cancer? Not a one, I'd venture to say. That's where Stand Up To Cancer comes in, an awareness- and fundraising telethon coming up September 5, starring tons of superstar celebrities and many of Famecrawler's fave celeb parents. In an unprecedented move, ABC, NBC, and CBS will all simultaneously air the special on their networks. You can see the video promo for the live special at the end of this post.

So far, there are over 60 celebrities scheduled for the telethon. The list includes Diane Keaton, Carrie Underwood, Jessica Alba, Halle Berry, Ellen DeGeneres, Jennifer Garner, Jack Black, Sheryl Crow, and Rob Lowe.

The celebs will be joined by the major network news anchors Katie Couric, Brian Williams, and Charles Gibson and it's being deemed "edutainment," according to exec producer Laura Ziskin, herself a cancer survivor.

Couric herself lost her husband to colon cancer when he was 42, and several years later her sister was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. All this happened when Couric's daughters were just 6 and 2 years old. I remember it well.

Stand Up To Cancer also features the debut of a sure-to-be hit single called "Just Stand Up" by Rihanna, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce, and Mariah Carey. The song's proceeds will all go to cancer research.

The telethon is all about getting scientists to come together to fight cancer. Ziskin says it'll be "a phone-in, a sit-in, a love in" and "people can call in and talk to their favorite celebrity" when they call in to make a donation.

I love it when the power of celebrity is put to good use. I have a dear friend facing recurrent ovarian cancer for the third time, and I lost my stepfather to lung cancer four years ago. I'm sure you've been touched by cancer, too, and hope you'll tune in to this amazing project.

Source | Stand Up 2 Cancer Site | Photos: Stand Up 2 Cancer & Celebuptopia

Promo Video

"Last Lecture" Randy Pausch Dies

Whit Honea — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 16:07:00 GMT

Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon University computer science professor, has died from the terminal cancer he had been fighting. Randy Pausch led a life all too short, but it was life well lived.

His "Last Lecture," in which he discussed the lessons of life as he had learned them, has had millions of internet viewers and Randy Pausch was featured on television shows and publications across the country.

It is a touching and moving lecture and it is a tribute to the man that was able to deliver it.

Randy Pausch is survived by his wife Jai and their three children, Dylan, 6, Logan, 3, and Chloe, 2.

The lecture can be seen below, it is worth watching:

Randy Pausch and the Impact of a Lecture

Whit Honea — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 06:56:00 GMT

I first saw the video of Randy Pausch giving his now famous "last lecture" shortly after it hit the internet. It came in an email, the type you normally delete, with little midi files playing crappy music and hearts bouncing on rainbows. There may or may not have been puppies. I'm sure that I was instructed to forward it to everyone that I love or some such thing. They all blur together, these dreaded "FWD" emails that stalk my inbox.

For some reason I watched the video that day and I may or may not have forwarded it to everyone that I love. I honestly don't remember. I do, however, recall the power of the video and the words of Randy Pausch, and if I think real hard I might even remember a tear or two, although it can never be proven.

I told the staff that I was going to write about Randy Pausch for FameCrawler and I only received one reply: who?

Granted, Randy Pausch hasn't made millions of dollars in the world of entertainment. He hasn't slept with Hollywood starlets, as far as I know. He hasn't been in rehab or sold pictures of his children to Ok! Magazine. He has been on Oprah, and no, he didn't jump on the couch. He is a celebrity, albeit a reluctant one, in the most positive sense of the word, and that is enough to justify his presence here.

His video, which was filmed as part of a series at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University where he taught computer science, has been viewed an estimated 6 million times. He was the subject of an hour long special with Diane Sawyer on Wednesday night and just had a book released this week. All of which deal with one thing, and in doing so expanding on many: life.

Randy Pausch is a father. He and his wife Jai have three children, Dylan, 6, Logan, 3, and Chloe, who is almost 2.

Randy Pausch is dying. He has terminal cancer. His time is limited.

His "last lecture" is about living life and chasing your childhood dreams. It was given to roughly 400 people in an auditorium in Pittsburgh. It has been seen by so many more and continues to touch and help people daily, yet Pausch makes one thing clear, while grateful and humbled by the attention, it is for his children that his words are intended.

The book is available now. The video is included below. Forward it to everyone that you love.

Photo/Source: AP

Please visit Randy Pausch's website