>From the American Cancer Society web page:

-- (begin excerpt)

The American Cancer Society is greatly disturbed by reports of a
fraudulent chain letter circulating on the internet which lists the
American Cancer Society as a "corporate sponsor" but which has in no way
been endorsed by the American Cancer Society. This letter appears to
have started on America Online but has now spread well beyond the online
service. There are several variations of this letter in circulation,
including one which has a picture of "Tickle Me Elmo" and one that is
essentially a paraphrase of the letter below. 

The text of the original message reads as follows:

LITTLE JESSICA MYDEK IS SEVEN YEARS OLD AND IS SUFFERING FROM AN ACUTE
AND VERY RARE CASE OF CEREBRAL CARCINOMA. THIS CONDITION CAUSES SEVERE
MALIGNANT BRAIN TUMORS AND IS A TERMINAL ILLNESS. THE DOCTORS HAVE GIVEN
HER SIX MONTHS TO LIVE. 

AS PART OF HER DYING WISH, SHE WANTED TO START A CHAIN LETTER TO INFORM
PEOPLE OF THIS CONDITION AND TO SEND PEOPLE THE MESSAGE TO LIVE LIFE TO
THE FULLEST AND ENJOY EVERY MOMENT, A CHANCE THAT SHE WILL NEVER HAVE.
FURTHERMORE, THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY AND SEVERAL CORPORATE SPONSORS
HAVE AGREED TO DONATE THREE CENTS TOWARD CONTINUING CANCER RESEARCH FOR
EVERY NEW PERSON THAT GETS FORWARDED THIS MESSAGE. PLEASE GIVE JESSICA
AND ALL CANCER VICTIMS A CHANCE.

IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS, SEND THEM TO THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY AT
ACS@AOL.COM 

As far as the American Cancer Society can determine, the story of
Jessica Mydek is completely unsubstantiated. No fundraising efforts are
being made by the American Cancer Society using chain letters of any
kind. Furthermore, the email address ACS@AOL.COM is inactive. Any
messages to the American Cancer Society should be instead sent through
the American Cancer Society website at http://www.cancer.org. 

This particular chain letter with its heartbreaking story appears to
have struck an emotional chord with online users. Although we are very
concerned that the American Cancer Society's name has been used to
manipulate the online public, we applaud the good intentions of all who
participated in this letter. We are pleased to note that there are so
many caring individuals out there and hope that they will find another
way to support cancer research. Jessica Mydek's story, whether true or
false, is representative of that of many cancer patients who benefit
daily from the efforts of legitimate cancer organizations nationwide.

-- (end excerpt)

Conclusion: DO NOT FORWARD this bogus chain letter ANYWHERE. It's fake.
Furthermore, a *very* quick check of the ACS website exposed the letter
as a fake. Next time you're tempted to spam hundreds of people, do a
little research first, huh?

--JSH