Stand Up To Cancer

Elena, Brooke and Keith Desserich

In this heartbreaking journal, parents Brooke and Keith Desserich remember their young daughter's fight with brain cancer, as well as the notes and drawings Elena left hidden around their home in the last months of her life. "That night, the doctors sent us home for rest, but after they told us that our daughter had only 135 days to live, sleep wasn't in our plans," Keith writes in one entry. "Still we smiled, wiped the tears from our eyes and tried to pretend that everything was all right."
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/33505113/ns/today-today_books/

Chuck Biscuits

Biscuits, punk drummer for bands like Black Flag and Danzig, has passed away from throat cancer at the age of 44. Known for his energetic drumming style, Biscuits - born Charles Montgomery - was influential in both the punk and metal genres. "It came very natural to him," said the drummer for the Descendants, Bill Stevenson. "He was hugely influential without really being as 'famous' as drummers who were actually much less influential musically."
http://www.zimbio.com/Chuck+Biscuits/articles/RvWU9dtSUA3/Chuck+Biscuits+Drummer+Black+Flag+Danzig+Dies

Rick Lyke

After being diagnosed with prostate cancer at the age of 47, Lyke, from Charlotte, NC, decided to fight back in a unique way - he founded "Pints for Prostates," an organization that reaches out to men on the importance of prostate screening through beer festivals and events held in pubs. "The pink ribbon campaign has really made it possible for women to talk about breast cancer, so we're trying to do the same thing for guys," Lyke said. "I'm hoping that there's a whole bunch of other guys out there who'll be able to experience the same thing [as me] -- see their families grow up and grow old."
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/10/30/cancer.pints.prostates/index.html

Kelly Molineaux

Molineaux's story comes to us from Great Britain. The mother of two was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 25 and is the youngest cancer patient ever to undergo a mastectomy at the hospital where she's being treated. The social worker made it home from treatment just in time to celebrate her twin sons' birthdays. "I hope that my story will encourage other women, who might think that they are too young for cancer, to check themselves -- it could save their life," she said.
http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/north-warwickshire-news/2009/10/31/nuneaton-mum-battling-to-beat-breast-cancer-tells-her-story-92746-25054729/

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