Gilda's Gala, a fundraiser to help people impacted by cancer, is Thursday
A couple of weeks ago, I stopped by Gilda's Club in Royal Oak, a center that provides emotional and social support to anyone impacted by cancer.
What a charming, beautiful place. People were in various rooms of the quaintly decorated victorian house knitting,chatting and drinking tea. Some were in the kitchen munching on pizza.
It seemed more like the home of a big family, packed with friends and relatives on a Sunday afternoon. But this is how Gilda's Club is everyday.
On Thursday night, the group hosts its annual fundraiser, Gilda's Gala, to benefit Gilda's Club.
Sponsored by the Chrysler Foundation, the event features Fox 2 Health Reporter Lila Lazarus serve as emcee. Eight founders will be honored at the event.
The special event gets underway at 6:30 p.m. with a silent auction and dinner begins at 7:15 p.m. at the Troy Marriott, 200 W. Big Beaver Road, Troy.
Cost is $150; and $100 for members. Tickets include dinner, a martini luge, silent and live auctions and entertainment & dancing featuring Detroit's own Dr. Pocket.
Gilda's Club provides a meeting place where men, women and children living with cancer and their families and friends join with others to build emotional and social support as a supplement to medical care. Free of charge, Gilda's Club offers support and networking groups, lectures, workshops and social events in a homelike setting in Royal Oak.
Michael Radner, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Takata, Henry Ford Health System, Soave Enterprises, Franklin Bank, Autoliv North America, UHY Advisors, St. John Health and Sandy and Michael Hermanoff.
Gilda's Club Metro Detroit is located at 3517 Rochester Road, Royal Oak. For information, call (248) 577-0800 or visit www.gildasclubdetroit.org.
If you're in the area, stop by for a tour.
Category: Health and Fitness
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Thu, May 8, 2008 at 11:02 AMMariah Carey has less to love
Mariah Carey is back on top with her hit CD "E=MC2," but Carey is soaring high with a new look.
The songstress has revealed she lost 32 pounds in four months by limiting her portions.
She told Life + Style magazine she created a new diet by eating whatever she wanted but ate less than a forkful of food. She loves pasta and carbs, but gave them up for mini meals of fish, fruit and vegetables.
The R&B diva, also featured in the upcoming edition of People magazine, says she wants to lose another five pounds before she goes on tour for her latest album. She worked out fiercely to get into shape, spending time in the gym and doing a water workout routine. Maybe part of her motivation also was getting in shape for her wedding. Yes, it's true she married actor Nick Cannon.
Carey and Cannon were married April 30 in a sunset ceremony on her estate in the Bahamas.
The couple will be featured on the cover of People magazine, hitting newstands Friday. Read the article for photos of their new tattoos, their plans for children and Nick's candied-themed proposal.
Category: Health
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Wed, May 7, 2008 at 9:32 AMMark Roby's keys for living with cancer
Six years ago, Mark Roby of Birmingham was diagnosed with a form of liver cancer so rare that only 125 people in the world have been diagnosed with the disease.
Repeatedly, doctors told him to prepare to die, but Roby decided he wanted to live. He was supposed to die years ago. How did he do it?
He says he used his years of experience as a physician's assistant and a homeopathic physician to come up with a plan for his mind, body and spirit.
Here are some steps Roby takes or has taken to remain healthy:
1. Prays and meditates daily.
2. Attends church services regularly.
3. Attends retreats.
4. Begins each morning imagining his liver healthy.
5. Walks and does calestinics on alternate days.
6. Walks in the woods as often as he can.
7. Gives thanks and praise for his life daily.
8. Forgives everyone who wrongs him.
9. Avoids judging people.
10. Asks others for forgiveness. Wrote letters to about 25 people in his life with whom he had shared difficulties, asking for their forgiveness.
11. Drinks Noni or cherry juice to jumpstart his day.
12. Undergoes chemotherapy when needed.
13. Eats whole grain cereal for breakfast with fresh berries or grapes.
14. Takes flaxseed, fish oil capsules and other supplements.
15. Gets colonics and coffee enemas.
16. Gets vitamin IVs.
17. Drinks an elixir of a fresh organic blend of celery, beet and apple juice.
18. Ingests a laundry list of nutritional supplements from Vitamin D to wheatgrass, resviratol, cucurmin and liver nano detox, Alpha Lipoic Acid.
19. Drinks cups of hot herbal tea and especially loves green tea.
20. Takes green tea capsules when green tea bothers his stomach.
21. Pours over medical journals and all the information he can find on health and nutrition.
22. Continues to become an expert on his disease.
23. Keeps his body alkaline on the Ph scale by drinking alkaline water.
24. Avoids meat, alcohol and processed foods, most foods in a box thaqt make the body's cells acidic.
25. Avoids sugar, which he says fosters cancer growth.
26. Drinks super green drinks, a nutrition-packed powder he mixes with water.
27. Eats lots of dark, green leafy vegetables such as brussel sprouts, broccoli, cabbage and kale.
28. He consumes wild salmon, cod or white fish. Sometimes, he has a bit of organic, antibiotic-free chicken.
29. Visits doctor regularly.
30. Seeks people to help them remain healthy.
Roby consults with other people with cancer and other health challenges, often helping them to wean off of excessive prescription drugs. He also helps people prevent diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
He doesn't set a price for his consultations, but does ask for a donation.
To arrange for a consultation, e-mail him at cancercoachND@aol.com
Category: Health
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Fri, May 2, 2008 at 3:44 AMWalk-A-Thon to benefit Mark Roby's cancer treatment
People who know Mark Roby call him a unique man. After spending the past few days documenting his journey since he was diagnosed with one of the world's rarest forms of liver cancer -- epitheloid hemangioendothelioma -- I acknowlege I haven't met anyone like him before.
Although only 125 people in the world have been diagnosed with his disease, he doesn't feel sorry for himself. Instead, he seeks out others suffering from cancer to help them live longer lives.
Roby - a cancer coach, homeopathic doctor and physician's assistant - suggests people change their diets, lifestyles and attitudes. He's sharing "The 3 Keys to Being Fully Alive" at 1 p.m. Saturday after a benefit Walk-A-Thon for him at Unity of Royal Oak.
When he was diagnosed with cancer six years ago, several doctors told Roby he wouldn't make it. Many of them told him they had no treatments that would work, and there was nothing they could do for him. They suggested he go home, get his affairs in order and prepare to die.
But Roby has defied death. Not only that, with prayer, his special holistic diet and community support, he has come up with a set of keys for living. Check out this video on how he battles cancer.
In speeches and private consultations, people listen to him. After all, he was supposed to be dead years ago.
Now he's on a mission to help other people survive cancer and other diseases. He's had a difficult battle and while his cancer is in partial remission and his tumors are shrinking, he says, he's deeply in debt because of medical bills.
He has insurance coverage, but his insurance doesn't pay for the chemotherapy treatments, homeopathic medicines and his monthly trips to New York for treatment.
His friends will host the Walk-A-Thon (rain or shine) to help him raise money to continue paying for treatments he needs to live. It's being held 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at Unity of Royal Oak, 2500 Crooks Road, Royal Oak. If you'd like to make a donation - the suggested amount is $10 per mile in the 3-mile/5K walk - send it to Walk-A-Thon, 821 Hilldale, Royal Oak, MI 48067.
The fundraiser also benefits the Metro Detroit Center for Attitudinal Healing, which Roby co-founded. The nonprofit organization helps people have experiences that lead to love, peace and unity.
For more information, call Ron at (248) 788-8926 or e-mail ahdetroit@wowway.com
Look for a full story about Roby in the My Monday section of The Detroit News, in which he shares how he has overcome cancer so far.
Don't miss American Cancer Society's Relay in Dearborn
Where can you celebrate cancer survivorship, remember lost loved ones and fight back against cancer?
The American Cancer Society Relay For Life, of course. The event kicks off this weekend, running Saturday and Sunday.
Dearborn residents will walk around the clock in the battle against cancer during relay. The event, held in more than 4,800 communities across the United States, unifies people concerned about cancer.
The event starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Ford Community-Performing Arts Center, 15801 Michigan Ave
Dearborn. It continues through 10 a.m. Sunday.
Relay For Life is a public event and is open for anyone to attend. For information about how to form a team, find an event near you, or become involved in Relay For Life, contact your local American Cancer Society at (248)663-3400 or (800) ACS-2345 or visit www.cancer.org.
Category: Health and Fitness
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Thu, Apr 24, 2008 at 2:41 PMWalk it out on Mother's Day
On Mother's Day, thousands of women across the country will embark on an eight-week physical activity challenge for better health.
They will be part of the WOMAN Challenge--Women and girls Out Moving Across the Nation--a physical activity challenge on May 11 sponsored by the Office on Women's Health to encourage women to walk 10,000 steps or get 30 minutes of moderate activity most days of the week.
The WOMAN Challenge is a free and fun way for women and girls to get moving, with several features to help them reach their activity goals. Participants will:
*Receive a welcome packet full of motivational materials
*Choose one of six virtual routes across America to track their progress
*Set activity goals
*Form teams with friends, family or co-workers or participate as an individual
*Receive weekly motivational e-mails and health tips
Join the Office on Women's Health in challenging women across the country to become more active and take simple steps for a longer, healthier and happier life.
For more information about the WOMAN Challenge, visit www.womenshealth.gov/woman.
Category: Health
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Wed, Apr 23, 2008 at 2:56 PMGroups offers children's healthcare grants
UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation offers grants for children needing critical health care treatment, services or equipment not covered or not fully covered by their parents' health benefit plans.
The Minneapolis-based organization provides grants to families to help pay for speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy sessions and prescriptions. It also pays for medical equipment such as wheelchairs, orthotics and eyeglasses.
Parents and legal guardians may apply for grants of up to $5,000 for child medical services and equipment by completing an online application at www.uhccf.org. Tax-deductible donations may also be made online.
To be eligible for grants, children must be 16 years of age or younger. Families must meet economic guidelines, reside in the United States and be covered by a commercial health benefit plan.
For more information about the foundation, visits its site at www.uhccf.org.
Category: Health
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Tue, Apr 22, 2008 at 12:34 PMBlack women and incontinence
The good news for black women: They have less than half the chance of developing urinary incontinence as do white women, according to a new study from the University of Michigan Health System.
The bad news: When they get it, the condition tends to be worse than in white women. The amount of urine they lose during each episode of incontinence is larger, with half of black incontinent women reporting that they lose urine to the point of noticeably wetting their underwear or a pad, compared with a third of white women.
The significance: The study confirms some common beliefs, and refutes others. The medical community has long held the belief that black women don't experience a type of urinary incontinence known as "stress incontinence," in which urine is lost during activities such as exercising, coughing and laughing. In fact, the study found, black women do experience stress incontinence. The study is in the current issue of the Journal of Urology.
"This is a population that may have been neglected because it was believed for so long that black women did not have stress urinary incontinence," says lead author Dr. Dee E. Fenner, Furlong Professor of Women's Health and director of gynecology at the U-M Health System.
"In truth, black women suffer from the social embarrassment of urinary incontinence, and the medical community needs to remember this when diagnosing and treating all women."
The study indicates black women experience "urge incontinence" twice as often as white women, which supports other research on the subject. This type of incontinence involves a strong and sudden need to urinate, followed by leakage.
Medical experts believed other medical conditions associated with urinary incontinence are different between black and white women. This study suggests, however, that those conditions - such as diabetes, constipation, depression, obesity and chronic lung disease - occur at similar rates between the two races.
By the numbers:
-About 27 percent of all women surveyed had the condition.
This study found that 14.6 percent of black women and 33.1 percent of white women have urinary incontinence.
-Black women with incontinence reported having stress incontinence in about 25 percent of instances, compared with 39 percent of white women.
-Black women with incontinence reported urge incontinence in 24 percent of cases, compared with 11 percent of white women. The remaining numbers had a combination of both types.
-The women in the study ranged from 35 to 64 years old, with an average age of 42. Most of the women - nearly 70 percent - had delivered at least one baby vaginally; vaginal deliveries are often associated with urinary incontinence.
-The study involved 1,922 black women and 892 white women from three southeastern Michigan counties. Data were collected through a telephone survey.
Category: Awards
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Tue, Apr 15, 2008 at 4:45 PMAre you an outstanding cancer survivor? Here's an award for you
The Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute is accepting nominations for the Patricia Milner Sachs Heart of a Survivor Award.
The award recognizes an outstanding cancer survivor who exemplifies caring, compassion and devotion to helping others in their journey to survive cancer and will be given at the Karmanos Cancer Institute's Survivorship Celebration June 19. All cancer survivors may apply.
This is the second year for the award, named in honor of Patricia Milner Sachs, a former Karmanos employee who lost her 11-year battle with melanoma in June 2006.
Through her dedication to Karmanos and her commitment to cancer education and awareness, Sachs developed several community programs, including Survivorship University, free lectures for cancer survivors and their caregivers; "N'Siah" support group; and S.H.I.E.L.D., a sun safety and skin cancer awareness program for children and adults.
Nomination forms for the Patricia Milner Sachs Heart of a Survivor Award are available at www.karmanos.org. Nominations must be received at the Karmanos Cancer Institute by April 27.
Category: Health
Posted by Kimberly Hayes Taylor on Sun, Apr 13, 2008 at 11:39 PMDoctor discusses race and diabetes Monday night
Renowned physician Milton R. Mills, associate director of preventive medicine with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. and a practicing physician at Fairfax Hospital in Virginia, will lecture on "Kids, Obesity & Diabetes" on 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Charles L. Spain School, 3700 Beaubien (north of Mack, near the Detroit Medical Center) in Detroit. The lecture is free and open to the public.
Dr. Mills' talk responds to the rising rate of obesity and diabetes in our community, and especially in our children. He specializes in race and diet issues and will address these concerns. He'll also provide tools to help stem the tide.
Mills will discuss which foods can bring about diabetes and obesity, foods to prevent them and what parents can do to help their child avoid lifetime complications from these diseases.
Mills is Stanford University School of Medicine graduate. A published author and sought-after speaker, Mills is a member of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a national group of doctors and laypersons who promote better nutrition and higher research standards. He has lectured across the United States and Mexico on the impact of meat and dairy consumption on human health; nutrition and HIV/AIDS; nutrition and cancer; and the dietary needs of African Americans and other ethnic groups.
