SAN FRANCISCO -- Giants outfielder Gregor Blanco has plenty of motivation for increasing his support in the fight against breast cancer. All he has to do is think of his mother, Rosa.
Rosa Blanco died of brain cancer in 2005. As Gregor related, hers was a spirited battle. Five years before her death, Rosa developed breast cancer. That was followed by a bout with ovarian cancer. Then came lung cancer. One by one, the diseases assaulted her. One by one, she overcame them. Though brain cancer finally silenced her, it never muted her spirit.
"She was tough, I'm telling you," Blanco said recently.