I stand up.

For my grandma and my aunt.

Cancer.

Such a powerful word that we are all too familiar with. Countless people across the world have personal experiences with this disease. Either fighting it themselves or taking the journey with a family member or friend.

The statistics are alarming. 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Every minute someone loses their fight with cancer. In America, cancer claims the lives of 1500 people every year. What if you had the opportunity to try to save one of these lives?

Stand up to Cancer(SU2C) gives you that opportunity to help. It is an initiative that was started back in 2008 to raise awareness of the disease and the fact that everyone is connected by cancer. It is a major telethon event that first aired Septemeber 5, 2008 on major networks for an hour. It gives you the opportunity to call in during that hour to pledge and have the chance to talk to one of the many stars  that are awaiting your call to pledge. Stars that have fought the battle with cancer and won or stars that have a personal story with cancer and believe in its cure.

To date SU2C has raised more than $180 million for cancer research to discover a cure and stop this horrible diseasing from claiming so many mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, friends. This year the hour long special will air today at 8:00 p.m. It will air on CBS, NBC, FOX, MTV, and many more.

You are being given the chance to say you helped. You might think your small donation might not make a difference, but think if every person on your block thought the same thing. That's about average 15 houses giving even $20, easy $300. And if every block in the town donates, $1200. Take that across the United States and imagine how much we can donate.

And if you still don't think what you can give matters, don't you want to say you at least tried to help? Helped to find a solution that is in our reach and we want to see in our lifetime.

I stand up for my grammy who lost her battle with cancer when I was 8. I cherish the memories I have of her making root bear floats and homemade apple sauce. The disease took her away from seeing me even graduate 8th grade and sharing in all my special moments.

I stand up for my aunt who won her battle with breast cancer 5 years ago and is a survivor.

I stand up for every person who is affected by this disease on a daily basis.

So who do you stand up for?

For more information on the "Stand Up to Cancer" telethon, click here. And be sure to watch the event Friday evening at 8:00 p.m. Use the hastag #istandupfor to see your message being broadcast during the telethon.