Stand Up To Cancer

John Gibbs

This article out of North Carolina tells the story of Beau's Buddies, a nonprofit providing a wide range of services and support for families facing cancer, and particularly of Dr. John Gibbs, a founding member of the organization who faced a cancer diagnosis himself in 2006. "I treated thousands of patients before, but now, when I look at the disease process after being a patient myself, I see that there is a medical aspect of treatment and a psychological and emotional aspect to treatment," Gibbs says. "I've started to learn that the heart is as important as the medicine, particularly with a disease like cancer."
http://www.reflector.com/news/beaus-buddies-gather-to-fight-cancer-918143.html

Jodi and Cici Beutel

Jodi Beutel, who owns a hair salon in Rochester, New York, was inspired to take action following the deaths of her mother-in-law, Cici, and a longtime client, Kim, from breast cancer. Six years ago, Jodi began an annual "Cut-a-thon" designed to raise money for breast cancer research; haircuts cost $15, and all proceeds are donated to the Breast Cancer Coalition. In this article, Jodi recalls shaving Kim's head for her when chemotherapy began to make her hair fall out. "We cried while we did it," Jodi says. "We hugged. I was glad I could do it for her."
http://www.13wham.com/guides/health/story/Haircuts-Help-Fight-Breast-Cancer/HHhUYHDTnU2wR-d0sKD6CQ.cspx

Laurren Smith

Laurren Smith is a Dallas-area 13-year-old facing down a rare form of cancer. When her doctors warned her family she might not make it to Christmas, the community rallied around her to create Christmas in October. Their parade included fancy cars, trucks and a Christmas-themed float done in hot pink and zebra stripes - Laurren's favorite colors. "We believe that a miracle is still possible," says one of the parade's organizers. "But we believe that part of the miracle is about how many people's lives a 13-year-old girl can touch."
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-earlyChristmas_26met.ART.State.Edition1.4bace7a.html

Heather Insley Klein

In a Facebook comment on last week's "With You, We Stand," Heather shared her story: "I stand up for my aunt who has a crazy stomach cancer usually found in men over 70. She's fighting like mad! I also stand up for all the women in my life who were diagnosed with breast cancer and so far beaten it. I love you all so much."

As always, we invite you to share your stories in the comments below.