"With all that is available on the Internet, comprehensive, patient-friendly and accurate information is tremendously important to patients. I am extremely pleased to be able to participate in a far-reaching program to help bring valuable information to a broad audience of cancer patients and their families," said Dr. Raghavan.

Already known for producing The Group Room®, the nationally syndicated call-in cancer talk radio show that airs live on Sundays, and is also heard live on XM Satellite Radio and Internet simulcast, Vital Options is expanding its programming to include a weekday show that combines audio streaming supported by visual aids at www.vitaloptions.org. Discussions will be led by noted medical opinion leaders from leading cancer centers and research institutions and will include programming on adult, young adult and pediatric oncology. On-air questions may be submitted by E-mail. High-speed Internet access is not required and all shows will be archived and available at any time.

"CancerTalk's audio-visual component will further demystify and clarify the cancer experience, covering all cancer types and providing essential medical information that patients can easily download and use in discussion with their own physicians," said Selma Schimmel, founder & CEO of Vital Options International and a two time cancer survivor. "As an organization that strives to facilitate a global cancer dialogue, it is our responsibility to keep up with the rapidly advancing communications industry. More and more people are relying on the Internet for healthcare information and CancerTalk provides an extremely effective way to reach every person touched by cancer with information they can apply to their own situations."

CancerTalk(SM) is available for a monthly subscription donation of $3.95 and will initially air Tuesdays, soon to expand to Tuesdays and Thursdays. Opportunities are available to clinical institutions interested in receiving DVDs of CancerTalk for rebroadcast within their in-patient communications systems. The program is produced in association with 1010TV, a high-bandwidth streaming media provider. For more information, or to become a CancerTalk subscriber, go to http://vitaloptions.org/index_cancertalk.html.

Founded in 1983, Vital Options was the first national organization to singularly focus on young adults with cancer. In 1993, Vital Options expanded its work into cancer communications, serving patients of all ages. Today, Vital Options is an international not-for-profit cancer communications, advocacy and support organization, headquartered in Southern California and a European division based in Paris, France.