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Tag: pancreatic cancer

  • Alan Rickman: Celebrities Pay Tribute to Late Actor

    Alan Rickman passed away last week from pancreatic cancer. Since his passing, a wealth of celebrities–many of whom were his fellow actors–have paid tribute to him via social media.

    Best known for his role in the Harry Potter films, Alan Rickman played countless roles throughout his many years as an actor. His death stunned nearly everyone who knew or even knew of him.

    Daniel Radcliffe posted the following tribute to Alan Rickman on his Google Plus page.

    “Alan Rickman is undoubtedly one of the greatest actors I will ever work with. He is also, one of the loyalest and most supportive people I’ve ever met in the film industry. He was so encouraging of me both on set and in the years post-Potter. I’m pretty sure he came and saw everything I ever did on stage both in London and New York. He didn’t have to do that. I know other people who’ve been friends with him for much much longer than I have and they all say “if you call Alan, it doesn’t matter where in the world he is or how busy he is with what he’s doing, he’ll get back to you within a day”.

    “People create perceptions of actors based on the parts they played so it might surprise some people to learn that contrary to some of the sterner(or downright scary) characters he played, Alan was extremely kind, generous, self-deprecating and funny. And certain things obviously became even funnier when delivered in his unmistakable double-bass.

    “As an actor he was one of the first of the adults on Potter to treat me like a peer rather than a child. Working with him at such a formative age was incredibly important and I will carry the lessons he taught me for the rest of my life and career. Film sets and theatre stages are all far poorer for the loss of this great actor and man.”

    Emma Watson posted her Alan Rickman tribute to her Facebook page.

    I'm very sad to hear about Alan today. I feel so lucky to have worked and spent time with such a special man and actor. I'll really miss our conversations. RIP Alan. We love you

    Posted by Emma Watson on Thursday, January 14, 2016

    She honored him via Twitter as well.

    Countless celebrities shared their memories and tributes of Alan Rickman.

    Alan Rickman. Amazing actor and director. Above all the most generous, funny, loving friend to Deb and I. We will miss you so.

    Posted by Hugh Jackman on Thursday, January 14, 2016

    Alan Rickman has left us with a wealth of beloved characters. Although his loss is mourned, these performances will always be a click away.

    Posted by George Takei on Thursday, January 14, 2016

    Jane the Virgin actress Gina Rodriguez shared her thoughts on Alan Rickman’s untimely passing via Instagram.

    “They got one talented angel up in heaven. Forever remembered. Forever missed. ?? #alanrickman,” she captioned a photo.

    A photo posted by Gina Rodriguez (@hereisgina) on

    Alan Rickman’s death made the Oscar nominations pale in comparison for Jamie Lee Curtis.

    Author Stephen King was stunned by Alan Rickman’s death, too.

    One can only hope that all these people sharing their sentiments in light of Alan Rickman’s passing, shared their love with the actor while he was alive.

    Perhaps his death can serve as a message for all to do just that.

  • Don James, Huskies Football Coach Dies at 80, Memorial Scheduled for Sunday

    Sunday was a somber day for die-hard Washington Huskies fans. Legendary Huskies football coach, Don James, died of pancreatic cancer. According to GoHuskies.com, James passed in the comfort of his own home. He was 80 years of age. The Ohio native lived and breathed football with an fulfilling athletic career that lasted nearly 50 years. James played 2 years of professional football as a quarterback and defensive back. However, his football glory came from his long-standing coaching career.

    In 1956, James took his first coaching job in Kansas, GA. He went on to coach at Southwest Miami High School in Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Colorado, and Kent State, before taking on his most notable coaching position as the head coach of the University of Washington Huskies.
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    James, who was commonly referred to as the “The Dawgfather” on campus, built a stellar career that led to his induction in the College Hall of Fame. James transformed the University of Washington football team into a championship-winning powerhouse. He arrived on campus in the fall of 1975, and his tenure lasted for a total of 17 years. Throughout his 17-year tenure, James led the team to six conference titles. In 1997, James was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. He retired with an overall head coaching record of 178-76-3.
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    Coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Rolltide shared his reaction to the loss and issued a statement of condolence, paying his respects to James. Saban learned under the tutelage of James’ coaching, so he definitely had a lot to say in reference to the famed coach.
    “Our thoughts and prayers go out to Coach James’ family. He was a special man and meant the world to me. There aren’t enough words to describe not only the great coach he was, but how much he cared for people and the positive impact he made in the lives of everyone he came in contact with.

    Coach James was my mentor and probably did more than anybody to influence me in this profession. Like I’ve said before, I didn’t plan on going into coaching. He saw something in me and asked me to stay on at Kent State as a graduate assistant after my playing career was over. I really enjoyed it, got hired full time and went on from there.

    From an organizational standpoint, our program today is run much like he ran his program. He was very organized, efficient, and did an outstanding job of defining expectations for players, coaches and everyone in the organization.

    He was always personal and inspirational to players and people around him. He wanted you to reach your full potential as a football player, but more importantly, he wanted you to do well in school and become the best person you could be so you would be successful in life. He was the same way when it came to assistant coaches or anyone who worked for him, you were a better person because of the time you spent with Coach James.”

    James will be honored during a special memorial service by the Huskies prior to the 8:00pm kickoff on Saturday. According to the Seattle Times, a public vigil in James’ honor is also scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 3:00pm at the Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle, Washington. However, further information regarding the specific details of the memorial have yet to be released.

    The official Twitter page for the Huskies Athletics’ department will be posting frequent updates with further information regarding James’ memorial and funeral arrangements.

     

    Image via Twitter | University of Washington Athletics

  • 15-Year Old Kid Invents Early Cancer Detection Tool

    In news that will probably make you feel like a worthless lump of a human being, a 15-year old high-school Freshman from Maryland has created a paper test strip for detecting cancer in its very early stages, and is being hailed as the nation’s next great scientific mind.

    Jack Andraka says he got the idea for the test strip–which is dipped in a solution of carbon nanotubes coated in antibodies that are designed to attract a specific virus or protein–while sitting in Biology class, and shopped his idea around to more than 200 researchers before finding one at Johns Hopkins University who would let him use their lab for his studies. What he found was that the paper strips were 100% accurate, but more than that, they targeted cancer cells way before the disease would become invasive. Because Andraka used pancreatic cancer as his main focus of study, those findings were of particular interest, because pancreatic cancer has an alarming 5% survival rate. However, ovarian and lung cancer can also be detected with the strips because of their reliable biomarkers.

    The good news doesn’t stop there. These paper strips are thousands of times less expensive than the current tests used for detection and around 400 times more sensitive, meaning doctors can seek out dangerous cells faster, cheaper, and more accurately than ever before.

    Andraka has already won the prestigious grand prize at the Intel International Science And Engineering Fair and has presented his findings at a TED Talk, which is kind of a big deal in the science world (if you’re unfamiliar with the Ted Talks, look them up. Each one is led by a different person on a different topic, but they are all extremely interesting. You can find them streaming on Netflix, among other places). He’s also patented his discovery, and says if things go well he will be working on starting his own company soon for further development. High school, apparently, will have to wait.