Kats!

to come in to see him. He did not want to tell me something this serious over the phone, and when he told me my first response was to laugh, actually. That was my first way of coping.”

Newton-John, whose father had died from cancer the weekend before she was diagnosed, underwent a partial mastectomy, followed by chemotherapy combined with more organic treatments. “I had to get my mind around chemo, which can be a very scary word to hear, but I also did meditation, homeopathic care, herbs, yoga, transcendental meditation,” said Newton-John, who today remains cancer-free. “Wellness became imperative to me.” (Information about her wellness center is at olivaapeal.com)

Leibow’s annual NF Hope Concert will also take place Sunday, beginning with a silent auction at 11:30 a.m. at Palazzo Theater. For six years the longtime “Jersey Boys” cast member has raised funds for the Neurofibromatosis Network, which supports families suffering from the genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on any nerve in the body without warning. Emma Leibow, the 7-year-old daughter of Jeff and his wife, Melody, suffers from the disease.

“She had some birthmarks that were a concern, and her birthmarks started to multiply, and she was diagnosed with NF at 9 months old,” said Leibow, who makes annual trips to Congress to lobby lawmakers to continue funding for NF research.

“The very first time we heard it, we knew nothing about it, so we went online and that was very scary,” Leibow said during a recent episode of my show “Kats! On the Radio” on KUNV 91.5-FM. “You’re reading about what this condition can be, not what it’s going to be. It was frightening, but fortunately we wound up talking to parents who told us this could be manageable, and that quelled our fears.”

Sunday’s performances at Palazzo Theater, the home of “Jersey Boys” when it opened in 2008, begin at 1 p.m. Set to appear are Gordie Brown, Susan Anton, Reckless in Vegas, These Guys,