Watching the Superbowl yesterday made me think of Brian Piccolo. Brian played for the Chicago Bears from 1965 until 1969. He was diagnosed with embryonal cell carcinoma, it was almost 100% fatal at the time of his diagnosis. Sadly, Brian Piccolo died on June 16, 1970 at the age of twenty six, leaving his wife and three daughters.

Chicago mourned the death of Brian Piccolo and he became a legend when the television movie Brian's Song was released in 1971. I remember the showing of that movie in my grade school years. There wasn't a dry eye in the auditorium.

Bears running back, Gale Sayers uttered these famous words in May 1970, as he accepted the NFL's most Courageous Player award. Sayers told the crowd that they had selected the wrong person for the honor, and would accept it only on Piccolo's behalf. He said " I love Brian Piccolo, and I'd like all of you to love him. When you hit your knees to pray tonight, please ask God to love him, too".

After Piccolo's death, the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund was established, and millions of dollars have been donated to the cause of finding a cure to various forms of the disease. Thanks in part to those funds raised in the Piccolo's name, with early detection and treatment, this disease is now almost completely curable.

There are also a few books you can read about Brian:

Brian Piccolo, A Short Season

Gale Sayers' autobiography I am Third.

Bruins rookie Phil Kessel is surviving testicular cancer. And the 19-year-old former University of Minnesota player, drafted in the first round this year, is talking about his shocking diagnosis and the surgery from which he is currently recovering.

Kessel, who is expected to rest for two weeks before returning to the ice, found a lump in his testicle and went immediately to his team internist, Dr. David Judge. Judge examined him, referred him for an ultrasound, and learned with Kessel that the lump was in fact cancer -- embryonal testicular cancer.

Both Judge and Kessel are happy to report that the cancer was localized to the right testicle -- which was removed during surgery -- and had not spread. Kessel, therefore, has a very low liklihood of recurrence.

Kessel, who has five goals and four assists in 27 games this season, says about his diagnosis, "I couldn't believe it. It was tough. I had a hard time with it."

Kessel thinks cancer will help him gain perspective on life. And he plans to speak out about his experience so others may benefit.

"If you're not feeling well go get checked out and make sure you're all right," he says. Getting checked out is what saved him -- and he hopes others will follow suit.

Kessel is the second Boston athlete to be diagnosed with cancer this year. Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester was diagnosed with lymphoma in August. With chemotherapy behind him, he is currently cancer-free. And so is Kessel.

Rhabdomyosarcoma is a type of soft tissue cancer that is most often found in children. This cancer will usually present itself as a noticeable lump. Since this is a cancer made up of cells that normally develop into skeletal muscles, the lump can appear in different locations of the body. Although most of our skeletal muscles are in our limbs and truck, it is usually found elsewhere.

The most common sites that rhabdomyosarcoma tumors are found:

• Head and Neck (30%-40%)
• Urinary and Reproductive Organs (20%-25%)
• Arms and Legs (18%-20%)
• Truck (7%)

There are two main types of rhabdomyosarcomas that occur in children, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma and alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma. The embryonal type (ERMS) is the most common type and usually occurs in infants and young children. The alveolar type (ARMS) usually effects older children and teenagers. Embryonal has a better prognosis than alveolar, which is a more aggressive tumor type.

About 3 percent of childhood cancers are diagnosed as rhabdomyosarcoma. In the United States about 350 new cases arise each year. It is the most common type of sarcoma occurring in the soft tissues, which is tissue that lies between the skin and the bone. It is the sixth most common cancer in children.

The researchers say there are no known environmental risk factors that cause rhabdomyosarcoma. There are some inherited conditions that can increase the risk of developing rhabdomyosarcoma but these are only a small fraction of those diagnosed. L-Fraumeni syndrome, Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, neurofibromatosis and Costello syndrome are inherited conditions that are known to lead to different forms of cancer. This information gives the researchers of this disease some key knowledge in understanding the disease and points them in the direction of a genetic cause for this type of cancer.