Imagine killing cancer cells without damaging healthy tissue – quite different from experiencing the ravages of chemo. Cleveland State University Professor, Dr. Michael Kalafatis, discovered this effective drug while working on a totally unrelated experiment on blood coagulation in CSU’s chemistry lab.

WKYC reported that both Cleveland Clinic and the National Institutes of Health have tested Dr. Kalafatis’ drug and report the same amazing results. In fact, the National Institutes of Health successfully tested this drug on close to 60 different cancer lines.

So why isn’t this cancer story reaching national news? It is amazing to me is that this cancer drug news garnered such little attention. If your loved ones have ever been touched by cancer, you know the importance of such a discovery. There is a duty to share.

Please pass this information and link to everyone you know. Dr. Kalafatis needs funding to continue his research for a cancer treatment breakthrough and potentially revolutionize the way we fight (and dare I say cure) cancer.

Please don’t think twice. Share the hope. Share the news.

If you were employed by a company who is required to offer COBRA insurance, you’re fortunate to have options. COBRA provides 18 months of continuous coverage. And the Federal Government’s Economic Stimulus Package created a COBRA subsidy requiring companies to pay 65% of your health insurance premiums for the first 9 of the 18 months after losing your job.  However, you may find that even with this premium reduction, health insurance is still too expensive. What if your company goes out of business? Or discontinues the health insurance plan? Or you don’t qualify for COBRA benefits in the first place? Now what?

Is there an alternative to expensive COBRA health insurance?

Yes, there is. But caution is advised. If you are in poor health or want to keep your current doctors and plan, you may want to take advantage of the COBRA option. You cannot be denied coverage or charged a higher premium. In any case, do not reject COBRA insurance until you are positive you can receive coverage elsewhere.

Health Insurance Option 1:

Join an association. Often group health packages provide a significant savings and benefits. As one option, check out your local Chamber of Commerce.

Health Insurance Option 2:

If you are married, research the cost and coverage provided through your spouse’s plan. Due to job loss, you can be added to their plan even if it is not open enrollment.

Health Insurance Option 3:

Go shopping for personal health insurance. The problem is …Where do you start shopping for health insurance?  Who can you trust?

eHealth Insurance Recommended by Kiplinger

Kiplinger rated eHealth Insurance as the best health insurance website for 2008. eHealth provides Free Health Insurance Price Comparisons for Individuals and Families. This site helps you compare only those insurers who are available in your particular state.

This is how it works:

Select your insurance type from the drop down menu and fill in your zip code. Click “Get Quotes”.  You will be taken to an application page like the one below. Notice they do not ask for any personal information. No name, address, email or health information. So there is no risk or follow up if you don’t want to hear from them again. Just good solid information. They only time you enter personal information is if and when you choose to apply.

eHealth Insurance Application - Recommended by Kiplinger

To begin your health insurance research, just fill in your birth date and the birth dates of anyone else within your family you are interested in receiving a health insurance quote for. Also be sure to honestly answer the questions marked with a green arrow if you want reliable comparison quotes.

NOTE:  Whenever you fill out insurance forms, it’s important to be completely honest. When you need to file a claim, you don’t want the insurance company to have any grounds for not allowing the claim. This goes for both health and life insurance.

You will see there is an “https” in the browser address, which means this is a secure site.  Also note the Truste certified and Verisign Secured icons at the bottom of the page.

Instant eHealth Insurance Quotes

Instantly you will receive insurance quotes for health insurance based on your age and location.

For example, in Ohio where I’m located, eHealth will return quotes from Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Celtic Ins. Co., Companion Life Insurance Company, Golden Rule, HealthAmerica, Humana, Kaiser Permanente of Ohio, Medical Mutual, and SummaCare Inc. of Ohio. There are 180 carriers that eHealth can quote, so depending on your state you may receive quotes from different health insurance carriers than I did.

The top quotes are “sponsored links” which means the insurance company paid to be here. Not necessarily a bad thing, but something you should be aware of. Below that (I highlighted in yellow) are what eHealth calls “Best Quotes”. These quotes are extremely useful for side by side comparisons of both pricing and benefits.

eHealth can do this because they aren’t an insurance company, they are an insurance agency using local agents to answer your questions.

You cannot go wrong using this service for research. They have insured over 1 million customers.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to submit them below. I’m very interested in hearing about how you have solved any health insurance issues.

Want a local insurance agent? A health insurance broker can help you shop price, company reputation, and has a good understanding of the features and benefits you should consider. To find a local agent, check out the National Association of Health Underwriters. Checking with eHealth Insurance first will give you a good idea of what to expect and to be able to discuss the options you feel are important to your situation.

You may not personally know Michelle, but I’m quite sure you know of at least one woman who shares her story. She fills me with inspiration and admiration. I trust her message will touch your heart as it did mine and perhaps shift your perspective.

As I finish my last few radiation treatments next week, I look forward to bidding adieu to 2008 as well. Most of the year has been a blur. One appointment after another has created a personalized calendar for treatments, tests and scans in three week intervals. It is exhausting to fight a hidden enemy, and my body told me I had no choice but to rest.

I also had to learn how to quiet my mind. I can’t remember doing much of either as a single parent through the years, and perhaps it was a message I needed to receive in a dramatic way.

When I hear someone reference an event or occasion that occurred last year or in the early part of this year, I struggle to remember the time or place .. Cancer patients often refer to the ‘before’ and ‘after’ of a diagnosis – a tick on our personal timeline where life as we knew it came to a sudden stop . . . listen, learn, strengthen and heal . . . and then we begin again.

It is a sobering reality that cancer is a sneaky villain and the type I am fighting is particularly aggressive, so I cannot be complacent. I know I am doing all I can with ongoing treatments, the cancer was caught early and my prognosis is very good. Yet, I also have to be realistic and live my life a little differently now – my perspective has shifted.

I met a woman during radiation who was receiving treatments for recurrence to her bones four years after her first diagnosis. Because this woman and I share the same type of cancer – HER2+ – and she was diagnosed the first time at my age – 44 – I cannot help but draw parallels. Dr. Rooney has told her she has approximately four years. She talked with me about trying to make the difficult decision to live the remaining years with quality for her family, or face the fight all over again.

No matter how much time I will have here, I want my living to become more purposeful. I have started a vacation savings fund with regular contributions and hope to take Lauren to Hawaii next Fall when I have completed Herceptin treatments. Time to celebrate! Perhaps a year or two after that, we can go to Europe before she leaves for college.

Maybe in this day and time this all sounds extravagant and not very practical, but this is my ‘after’ and I get only one.

Only one. We each are gifted one life to live.  Am I living purposefully, making conscious choices to spend my most precious asset, time, on what’s truly important? Faith. Relationships. Health. Memories. No regrets.

This philosophy has always been the basis of my teachings, the Swan Principle. It is time for me to renew my own Swan mantra for creating a life I love. Join me?

• I am secure in the direction of my life.
• I am making wise decisions for reasons that are important to me.
• I am living a life of conscious awareness and authenticity, aligning my values to my lifestyle.
• I am changing course, purposefully navigating from where I am now to where I want to go.

Security, Wisdom, Alignment, Navigation in all areas of my life. The process begins with the awareness of knowing what is truly important to you and then making sure every choice you make aligns with those values.

Just this week a friend’s mother passed, I was sick, and my 2 year old grandson nearly landed in the hospital. We all need wake up calls. Life is precious.

Two weeks from today, Christmas Day will have already come and gone. By shifting perspective from all the preparation, stress of shopping, and anticipation to concentrate on purposeful living, we make each day worthwhile. Make this holiday season different. Design memories.

Moments matter.

Michelle, thanks for the wake up call.  I love you.

As seen on Oprah, Dr. Mehmet Oz shares his insights on "YOU".  The body is a fascinating machine.  Nobody talks about it in ways that are as illuminating and compelling as Dr. Michael Roizen and Dr. Oz . They entertain as they help you build an awareness about your body and your health.

In YOU: The Owner’s Manual, Updated and Expanded Edition: An Insider’s Guide to the Body that Will Make You Healthier and Younger they showed how the human body works in general, and in You: On A Diet: The Owner’s Manual for Waist Management they explained how bodies lose weight and stay fit. These books have sold millions of copies.

Now, in You: Staying Young: The Owner’s Manual for Extending Your Warranty the doctors are going to talk about what happens as the body ages. This book by the doctor’s themselves and provides entertaining wisdom to help you get and stay healthy. Wealth and wellness are inseparable. Take care of both.

Health is your greatest retirement plan.

If you have not consciously made the decision to be rich, excellent, and healthy, then you have unconsciously made the decision to be poor, mediocre, and unhealthy.” Wallace D. Wattles

Each and every day you make unconscious choices that mold your future.

It’s Not Your Fault

Time challenged and overwhelmed with information, you make daily choices based on habit rather than by choice. You just don’t have time to think.That is why changing habits changes lives.

The less you have to think about something, the more likely it will get done.

Action Step

Trust the truth.  Numbers don’t lie.  Need a quick reality check?  Look at your:

• Bank records,
• Credit card statements,
• Calendar, and
• Scale.

These will immediately reveal unconscious choices that are impacting your life.

Ready to Improve Your Health?

Plan ahead. Keep cut up vegetables in the refrigerator for quick snacks.  You know the saying “Out of sight, out of mind?” If you can’t get rid of all the unhealthy snacks like chips, at least put them someplace where they don’t stare you in the face when you open the pantry. Make snacking difficult. If you’re determined to eat, the snacks are still available. But you are then making a conscious choice.

When you are tired, stressed, or overwhelmed, drive thrus or take out looks very appealing. Curb those thoughts by planning ahead with great crockpot meals, precut vegies ready to cook, or frozen meals you can place in the microwave. I have a great number of fish and chicken recipes that can be ready in less than 30 minutes.

Want to Become Financially Secure?

Keep track of where your money goes. And no, I don’t mean by putting everything on the credit card.

Just for 7 seven days, keep track of all your receipts. Vending machines, Starbucks coffee, cell phones, movies, clothing, books, gas, money you hand over to the kids or grandkids … keep track of it all. Still think you don’t have money to fund a retirement account?

Wake up call:  Pull out a recent Social Security statement, open it, and look at the page on the right side.  Add up all the money that has flowed through your hands over the last 20 years. Where did it go?

Pollyanna Thinking? Let’s Get Real

Obviously there are some things that are not within your control.

I am not saying you attracted bad health into your life if you are living with a chronic illness, cancer, or other disease. I know the personal frustration of doing everything “right” and still facing the daily fight to maintain good health. Health issues are often genetic or come from out of the blue even if you exercise and eat right. That’s reality.

I am not saying you brought financial ruin into your life if you lost a job because of a layoff, accident, or health issue. I have had clients who were very responsible but still faced financial insecurity from no fault of their own.

So, what am I saying? Take control of what you can. No excuses.

Unexpected change happens to us all. Seeing beyond today and planning for the future will prepare you for the inevitable change you are bound to face.

Live Life By Choice, Not Chance

• If you have a chronic illness, do what you can every day to improve or maintain health.
• Plan for the future by creating a financial cushion.
• Most importantly, control your attitude. How you think can reshape your life.

Join other savvy women at The Swan Network and learn about our WOW life planning workshops for women. Be sure to sign up for our free newsletter to keep informed.