Stars Team Up to Help Young Cancer Patient

Grammy-winning singer Stevie Wonder donated $100,000 to help 10-year-old Jasmine Faulk, who has alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, and her family pay for the aggressive treatment of the rare cancer. Wonder presented the check to Faulk while on stage in Los Angeles and then serenaded her with his hit “Isn’t She Lovely.” Actor Charlie Sheen also donated $75,000 to help Faulk.

Olympian Shannon Miller, the most decorated U.S. gymnast with seven Olympic medals, received a diagnosis of stage 1 germ cell ovarian cancer in 2011 and subsequently underwent surgery to remove her left ovary, followed by chemotherapy. While she knew her chances of conceiving were negligible due to the treatment, Miller and her husband still hoped to expand their family. In September, Miller learned she was pregnant with her second child, due in June.

In December, news circulated that actor Sir Ian McKellan, reprising his role of Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings franchise in The Hobbit, had received a diagnosis of prostate cancer. However, the actor explained on his website that he had received the diagnosis six or seven years ago and has not needed treatment but is examined regularly.

California Gov. Jerry Brown, 74, received a diagnosis of early-stage prostate cancer and subsequently completed radiation treatments in January while still fulfilling his job duties. The governor had previously had surgery to remove a basal cell carcinoma from his nose in 2011.