Last year, as part of Lung Cancer Awareness Month, Stanford physicians got together to create and share a message of hope and educate the public about this devastating disease. Please take about four minutes to watch this video and share it with friends and family A heart-felt "Thank You" to the Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford Hospitals and Clinics, Liat Kobza, and Todd Holland for producing this EXCELLENT video.
0 Comments
What can you do? Lots.
Learn the facts and spread the word!
Participate in a lung cancer event in your area.
Are you a Georgia Driver? Get your Lung Cancer Awareness License Plate today! LungCancerLicensePlate.org Consider at donation to The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund. Helpful and informative links to share! 10/23/2012 The Chick Running From New York to San Francisco @greatlungrun @jillslegacy @bonniejaddario #lungcancerRead NowOctober 23rd Update: Check out Kelcey on TV's "The Doctors" HERE. August 9th Update: Check out this video about Kelcey from Jill's Legacy. ***The following article was written by Kelcey Harrison and published on The Huffington Post on July 31st, 2012.*** Kelcey is a native San Franciscan and is a major marathoner and lung cancer advocate. On July 30th 2012, after leaving her job at New York County’s District Attorney’s office, the 24 year old Harvard grad set out on her Great Lung Run – a 3,500-mile run from New York’s Times Square to downtown San Francisco. Harrison expects to arrive in November 2012 and will be blogging and tweeting her adventures until then. Kelcey Harrison: I don't know if I am in denial, am extremely naive, or if I truly am confident that this is exactly what I am supposed to be doing right now, but for some reason the fact that I've started running 30 miles a day and won't stop until I reach San Francisco doesn't seem to stress or scare me. Maybe it's just that crazy people don't realize they're that crazy? I'm just your average 24-year-old who grew up in San Francisco, went to Harvard University, and moved to New York soon after college. For the last two years I worked at the New York County District Attorney's Office. Although I had the best time working there, I realized that law school was not really the route I wanted to take, and I was feeling a pull to make a change coupled with a very strong desire to contribute more to Jill's Legacy, I began thinking about some new options. This is where I break from the normal... The idea that I came up with was to run from New York to San Francisco to raise money and awareness for lung cancer. Lots of people asked, why? Couldn't I have done something a little less risky? But for me, it made perfect sense. I am using a skill that I have been blessed with -- running long-distance -- to make a difference and to draw people's attention to a topic that deserves greater discussion, awareness, and funding. I am doing something really big and out there, which was what Jill was all about. Jill and I first met when we attended kindergarten together. We went to school together from kindergarten through high school and remained good friends through college. While we were in school, there was a group of about five of us that was inseparable. She was a friend who was always there for me and had been in my life for so long that I always expected her to be around for life's big moments. When she was diagnosed with lung cancer at just 21 years old, it was a huge shock. I certainly did not know how to handle it, but she did. She lived with more grace, determination, strength, and joy than most people will ever demonstrate in their lifetimes. After her diagnosis she did a lot of advocacy work with the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation. In the last year of her life, Jill was named Pac-10 Women's Athlete of the Year, she graduated Cal Berkeley with a 4.0 and she led the Cal Women's crew team to a national championship. A few weeks after, Jill passed away. After her passing a group of young people with connections to Jill and/or the foundation formed Jill's Legacy, an advisory board to the foundation. Our goal is to mobilize young people to use their voices and power to raise awareness for lung cancer and to really start a movement to demand a change. Our goal is to debunk the stigma that faces lung cancer patients. The common belief that lung cancer is a smoker's disease or one that only affects older people is wrong. The first question people always ask in response to a diagnosis is, "Oh, you were a smoker?" The underlying message that comes across with this question is the idea that lung cancer patients somehow brought the disease upon themselves and so it is the last disease to get funding for research. This has to change. Nobody deserves to get cancer for any reason and, of equal importance no one deserves to get a disease for which there simply is not enough support. The survival rate for lung cancer has not changed in 40 years and that fact simply boggles my mind. With the technology we have today, there should be better options for early detection and treatment so that fewer lives will be lost. Why aren't people talking about this! For those of us who knew Jill, it drives us nuts. So, my journey has begun and I already have so much to share! Follow my Twitter account, as I will be Tweeting the wild adventures and characters I encounter along the way. I can't articulate how thankful I am for all of the support I have already received. I am already overwhelmed by the responses. We have raised over $100,000 since announcing the Great Lung Run just one month ago. I would be so appreciative of any support that readers can offer, whether that be in the form of a wave, a tweet or a penny. To support, visit www.thegreatlungrun.com, follow me on Twitter, or email me at Kelceyharrison@thegreatlungrun.com. by Ben Leach Originally published Online at OncLive.com on Friday, October 5, 2012. Bonnie Addario Nine years ago, Bonnie J. Addario was a successful fifty-something California businesswoman whose active lifestyle was being disrupted by persistent chest pain. Her doctors thought the pain stemmed from a bulging neck disc and, after months of fruitless exercising and frustration, she decided to pay for her own full-body computed tomography (CT) scan. As it turned out, she had stage IIIB lung cancer. Addario emerged from the trauma of her cancer journey with a desire to improve the experience for others. “It shouldn’t be that hard to get a good diagnosis and get good care,” Addario said during an interview at the 13th International Lung Cancer Congress. “There needs to be a change. And I am determined and committed to being a critical part of making that happen.” Today, Addario’s name is synonymous with ground-breaking research and meaningful support for patients. In 2006, she established the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, which has raised more than $9 million. In 2008, the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute was established as a nonprofit research consortium among top institutions spanning North America and Europe. Addario’s foundation also sponsors a lectureship award, which “recognizes luminaries in the quest to eradicate lung cancer” and supports a keynote presentation at the International Lung Cancer Congress. In July, D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, director of the Thoracic Oncology Clinical Program at the University of Colorado Denver, received the fifth annual award. As Addario has gone from patient to survivor, she has learned much about what patients are looking for in terms of information and care. Through her organizations, she is determined to play a part in helping patients with lung cancer achieve better outcomes. “There really is no consensus on standard of care for lung cancer like there is for breast cancer, for instance,” Addario said. “And because there’s such a good standard of care for breast cancer and early detection, the five-year survival rate for early-stage disease is about 90%. That’s where we need to be for lung cancer.” Conducting Her Own Search for Care Addario found that even after she was correctly diagnosed, she had to search for answers on how best to be treated. At first, she was told the tumor was in such a difficult position that a biopsy could not be performed. “It was too close to my heart for them to get in close enough to get any tissue,” she recalled. “So then they told me that the only option really was surgery to see what was in there, and that just didn’t sound good to me. You’re going to cut into my chest and explore?” By chance, Addario read a newspaper story about a partnership between Melissa S. Lim, MD, medical director and founder of Redwood Pulmonary Medical Association and a doctor at Sequoia Hospital, and David M. Jablons, MD, a professor in the Department of Surgery at the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco. The partnership allowed the pair to see difficultto- treat patients. “They recommended a chemotherapy/radiation combination to reduce the tumor as much as they could. And then if that was successful, they would consider surgery,” Addario said. “We got to that point. I had all of the therapy, and David said that it’s still very difficult and it’s a challenge, but if you’re up to it, I am. He said, ‘Because if you don’t have it, you for sure won’t live.’ So we did it. We had the surgery, and I’m a grateful patient.” After she was diagnosed with lung cancer, Addario found out that her own family has a history of lung cancer; her mother, in fact, was diagnosed with the disease after she was. As a result, her foundations aim to advance both emerging research and patient support. Connecting Patients With Information The Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute focuses on collecting and analyzing tissue, blood, and plasma samples from patients treated through community hospitals. “Patients are not getting molecular testing at the rate they should be,” Addario said. “Many deserve a targeted drug, and they’re not being given a targeted drug because they’re not being given the testing. So our goal there is standard of care.” The Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation concentrates on fundraising and public awareness campaigns. The first campaign was designed to raise awareness about getting CT scans to diagnose lung cancer. It has since grown into a resource network for patients and their families, with a particular emphasis on using the Internet to connect to resources. In June, the foundation launched its Lung Cancer Living Room, which consists of live stream broadcasts of an interview with an expert every third Tuesday of the month; patients and their families can type their questions and get answers from the doctor immediately. Addario estimates that about 1700 people tuned in to one broadcast. “There’s a breast cancer support group on every corner. Finding a lung cancer support group is not as easy. More often than not, when a patient is in treatment, it’s very difficult for them to travel any distance of any kind, and come at night because most people are still working, too,” Addario said. “Now we’re able to bring it home to them in their living room, where they can relax and have a cup of tea.” Addario believes that one of the biggest hurdles to better lung cancer care is the stigma surrounding the disease because of its association with smoking. She said that the negative perceptions contribute to a lack of resources being channeled into studying causation and prevention. “I never ask anybody if they smoked or not,” she said. “The worst possible thing that can happen to you is that in one moment you hear you have cancer—I don’t care what kind it is—and, oh, by the way, you should be ashamed, too, because you brought it on yourself. “We need to work on smoking because I personally think it’s not a good thing for anyone to smoke, but we shouldn’t take it out on people who have cancer,” Addario said. “We need to take just as good care of these people as we do any other patient with any other disease.” Taylor Bell by Taylor Bell, Guest Blogger The White House is “Pink” this month, but what will they do for Lung Cancer Awareness in November? NOTHING I’M SURE. Do people even know that November is Lung Cancer awareness month? Unfortunately, I doubt it. Sad. Pathetic. Hurtful. Shameful. Stigmatized. Unrecognized. Underfunded. Unimportant to Most. Why? Because everyone thinks that in order to get Lung Cancer you have to smoke, and because you smoke you somehow deserve lung cancer. NO ONE deserves cancer of any kind. Not all smokers get lung cancer and not all lung cancer patients are smokers. Actually 60% of the newly diagnosed are NEVER smokers or former smokers who quit decades ago. ALL cancers deserve the same recognition and awareness that breast cancer gets. We as a society do a disservice to the general public by hyping up breast cancer as much as we do and ignoring all of the other cancers that effect EVERYONE, specifically lung cancer. I’ve said it before but I am going to say it again. Lung Cancer is the NUMBER ONE cancer killer of MEN AND WOMEN in this nation. It kills more people than breast, prostate, colon and pancreatic cancers combined. It is the least funded of all major cancers and the stagnant 15.5% survival rate has remained unchanged for 40 years. 160,000 people will pass away from lung cancer this year alone in the US. For those of you who don’t know, there is one person who is doing everything humanly possible to raise awareness for this disease. Kelcey Harrison is running across the UNITED STATES. Who can say they have done that? I would be surprised if anyone can say they have accomplished that task. 30-40 miles a day for 18 weeks straight….. What more could a person do to bring awareness to this horrible horrible cancer?! There is NOTHING more she could do. She is giving EVERYTHING possible. ABC News Photo So, why hasn’t the national news media picked up this story? Who knows? Is it because of the stigma? Is it because it’s not the “pretty pink cancer”? Is it because Lung Cancer doesn’t matter to most people? I mean, the girl is RUNNING ACROSS THE UNITED STATES. Why isn’t the TODAY Show, Good Morning America, Ellen, Oprah, Brian Williams, Rock Center begging her to be on their telecast? STIGMA. PERIOD. That’s right folks, we have stigmatized this disease for so long that we have made everyone think that ONLY smokers get lung cancer and that they deserve it and therefore, Lung Cancer isn’t important. Lung Cancer happens to people from all walks of life, Moms, Dads, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Children, Siblings, Sorority Sisters, Division I College Athletes, NEVER SMOKERS, NFL Wives, Famous Singers and Actors, the list goes on. From the great words of Katie Couric “It’s time to put the blame game aside, and figure out what is really going on.” Please join me in trying to bring much needed awareness to Lung Cancer and bringing publicity to the one person who can say they have given everything humanly possible to raise awareness for this dreaded disease. Please follow @greatlungrun on Twitter or visit her website and fundraising page at www.thegreatlungrun.com and www.Crowdrise.com/thegreatlungrun.
10/2/2012 34-Year-Old Mother And Lung Cancer Patient Teams Up With The Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation For Frys.com Golf Tournament (October 8-14, 2012)Read NowNatalie DiMarco, Daughter of Fry's Electronics CEO John Fry, Rallies Supporters to Raise Monies to Eradicate Lung Cancer SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Natalie DiMarco is on a mission: to get the attention of First Lady Michelle Obama, Ellen DeGeneres, NBC Today Show's Natalie Morales, Howard Stern and a celebrity roster of high-profile media influencers (and the world) to stand up and pay attention to lung cancer. Almost immediately after being diagnosed with lung cancer, the North Bay, CA mother of two launched her personal campaign to beat the disease, and to tweet to get the attention of media influencers and proactively spread the word. She's also focused on improving all aspects of her life, both physical and emotional. She tweets the media stars with a heart-tugging message that includes a photo of her five and three-and-a-half-year-old daughters, Nicole and Megan: "Here are my two beauties promoting awareness for me, a non-smoker lung cancer survivor at age 34." DiMarco is bringing her team of supporters - Team Natalie, to the "Frys.com Open," Oct. 8-14, 2012 at CordeValle Golf Club, in San Martin, California. Frys.com has been a strong supporter of the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation (BJALCF), which has been earmarked as the featured charity on Oct. 13th at the tournament. The foundation has been a lifeline to DiMarco and her family since her diagnosis. For DiMarco, a non-smoker, the mission to spread awareness about lung cancer is personal and passionate. In March 2010, on her daughter's first birthday, and after months of numerous doctors misdiagnosing her constant cough and inability to catch her breath, she was dealt a bitter blow: Stage IV lung cancer. "It took me a long, long time and several different doctors and two biopsies before I was diagnosed properly," she said. "My first thought after hearing the news, was what was going to happen to my daughters?" My next thought was: "OK what do we have to do?" Today she is determined to fight the disease and help the 1.6 million people who will be diagnosed worldwide with lung cancer this year. Only 15.5 percent will survive. She is determined to quadruple the survival rate. "We need an army behind us to let the world know what lung cancer patients face and to get the medical community to start aggressively diagnosing and treating this cancer fast," she says. "Lung cancer is an epidemic and I believe we need to rally and do whatever we can to spread the word about how many people this disease is hurting." DiMarco is making an impact. For two years in a row she has brought together Team Natalie at the BJALCF San Francisco 5ks in Golden Gate Park and with about 100 team members each year, she has raised nearly $45,000 so far. "We are thrilled to be the featured charity of the Frys.com Open," said Bonnie J. Addario, founder of BJALCF and 7-year survivor. "Natalie hopes through telling her story that everyone will be encouraged to speak up about lung cancer and not be afraid of the stigma. She gives a powerful voice to all lung cancer patients, especially those diagnosed so young. It shows we are standing up to fight this disease-an epidemic, and together we can bring hope home. You can join Natalie in the fight against lung cancer by participating with us in Fry's.com Open." Currently Natalie is being treated at the Stanford Cancer Clinic and has undergone 39 cycles of chemotherapy - distributed every three weeks. She is also receiving an aggressive Eastern energy-healing regimen at Wu's Healing Center that includes: meditation, organ massage, yoga, herbs, breathing techniques, eating local organic foods and removing the upsetting drama in her life. It has been vital to her progress that she is part of the treatment team with her doctors and they all collaborate with each other. Key to her treatment is the emotional support she and her mother, Teri, have received through the Bonnie J.Addario Lung Cancer Foundation. Determined to accompany and support her daughter on her journey through cancer, Natalie's mom, Teri, is a regular attendee at the foundation's monthly support group - The Lung Cancer Living Room®. The foundation connects patients, physicians, researchers and all involved in lung cancer to work collaboratively and most importantly to share the latest breakthroughs to give patients like DiMarco a voice and access to the best treatments. "The foundation has been a godsend for me and my family," says DiMarco. "I was blessed to go all over the county and learn about cancer. I want others to realize that the foundation is the place to go for lung cancer patients. If I hadn't gone there, I wouldn't have met my doctor and learned about all the tools and techniques I am using. Other patients don't know BJALCF is the place where they can be connected to the best treatment out there." She added: "My focus is that this cancer is a blessing. If I hadn't been diagnosed with cancer, my kids would have never learned about nutrition and how diet and exercise can play a significant role in balancing your body and in making mommy feel better again. My kids will be healthier and stronger because of all of this. " About the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation BJALCF is one of the largest philanthropies (patient-founded, patient-focused, and patient-driven) devoted exclusively to eradicating Lung Cancer through research, early detection, education, and treatment. The Foundation works with a diverse group of physicians, organizations, industry partners, individuals, survivors, and their families to identify solutions and make timely and meaningful change. BJALCF was established on March 6, 2006 as a 501© (3) non-profit organization. SOURCE Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation Copyright (C) 2012 PR Newswire. All rights reserved 9/27/2012 The State of Georgia Releases the First Lung Cancer Awareness Specialty License Plates in the CountryRead NowTina Pink Proceeds to benefit the Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund and their efforts to support research and awareness. Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) September 27, 2012 // On Monday, September 24th, the state of Georgia released the first specialty license plate in the country specifically dedicated to lung cancer awareness. Now drivers can alert fellow motorists that, in Georgia, lung cancer matters! The plates are now available exclusively through The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund. Georgia drivers can learn more and begin the process of getting theirs at http://www.LungCancerLicensePlate.org. The license plate is sponsored by The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund, a non-profit based in Atlanta that raises awareness and research funds for the number one cancer killer in the world. The process to create specialty license plates in Georgia typically takes nearly two years. The state requires either 1,000 plates to be presold or an up-front payment to be made to cover the fees for those plates. Through The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund's fundraising efforts and the incredible generosity of their supporters, the Gaeta Fund was able to make the payment needed and to the get the bill before the legislature in a matter of months. State Senator Sean Jerguson (R-Holly Springs) was instrumental in adding the lung cancer awareness language to an existing bill (HB 732). He was alerted to this important cause by his close friend and Gaeta Fund supporter, Jackie Archer. A lung cancer survivor herself, Mrs. Archer is also a former Holly Springs City Councilwoman. In April of this year, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed HB 732 into law. "My mother, Joan Gaeta, died of lung cancer after a three-and-a-half year battle," says Tina Pink, a VP of Fundraising for the Gaeta Fund. "She was most passionate about raising awareness and fighting the stigma of the disease. This plate is a big step in that direction. I know she would be very proud! Now it's our mission to get them on as many cars as possible!" Mrs. Pink's sister, Theresa Andretta, VP of Operations, concurs. "Lung cancer kills more people than the next five cancers combined! Yet, it receives the least amount of funding. We have no choice but to raise awareness and to fight the stigma. These plates are a great way to do that. It is incredible to finally see them on the road!" The $25 plate manufacturing fee, payable to The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund, helps them support ground-breaking research through the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute. ABOUT THE JOAN GAETA LUNG CANCER FUND The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund was created in the fall of 2007 as The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation by her husband and children to raise awareness of the disease, to educate the public, and to be an advocate for research. They also strive to eliminate the stigma of lung cancer and to support survivors and their loved ones in their local community. In July of 2010, they re-launched as The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund benefiting the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute. Their ultimate goal remains the same: “to eradicate lung cancer.” By partnering with one significant research initiative, they can make a much greater impact in wiping out lung cancer. http://www.forjoan.org ABOUT THE ADDARIO LUNG CANCER MEDICAL INSTITUTE (ALCMI) ALCMI was established in 2008 as a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization with the ultimate goal of significantly impacting survival by directly catalyzing and accelerating discovery of new and more effective treatment options for all lung cancer patients. Presently, ALCMI has 13 academic and community medical centers in the United States and Europe closely collaborating on cutting edge research initiatives. http://www.alcmi.net ABOUT LUNG CANCER
|
Details
|