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.”
0 Comments
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
On July 29th, Kelcey Harrison took off from NYC & began running across the country, averaging 30 miles/day until she reaches San Francisco in November. Follow Kelcey on twitter.com/greatlungrun or at thegreatlungrun.com. Originally posted at www.lungcancerfoundtion.org. BLINDSIDED BY DIAGNOSIS, 42-YEAR-OLD SAN FRANCISCO ENTREPRENEUR RAISES NEARLY $70,000 TO TAKE DOWN LUNG CANCER William Marble Kipp II and Friends Join the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation’s Army of Alliance Partners SAN FRANCISCO (July 2, 2012) — Like many who rushed to Silicon Valley’s Internet gold rush, William Marble Kipp II found fame fast and furious. First as an innovator in the early 1990’s at Google, then launching his own renewable energy enterprise, nothing could stop this passionate 42-year-old trailblazer. Until last summer in August of 2011 when the never smoker, avid athlete and father of two was diagnosed with metastatic Lung Cancer. In the months that have followed, with the help of his sister Kassidee, 29, and other family members, Kipp is working non-stop to spread awareness and raise funding for the cancer that kills more than 1.3 million worldwide annually and 450 per day in the United States. On May 19, 2012, The William Marble Kipp II Foundation www.WMK2.com raised nearly $70,000 for the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation (BJALCF) to help efforts to find a cure for Lung Cancer, at its inaugural fundraiser. The event was held at Bluxome Street Winery in the bustling SoMa district of San Francisco. More than 180 friends and family joined the Kipps to show support for Kipp and to mobilize with the Foundation to end Lung Cancer This pairing of the Kipp Foundation and the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation speaks volumes about the grassroots efforts and initiatives that are joining forces to lend their voice to help fight Lung Cancer. To date, and coast-to-coast, private foundations, independent fundraising initiatives, individuals, families and organizations have teamed up to build on the momentum of BJALCF. They include the Atlanta-based Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Fund which “Dances for Joan” each year, Grow For The Cure out of South Carolina which touts an innovative online adventure for men to grow beards in humorous shapes and names like “Zappa” and “Old Dutch” challenging support from friends online. Mae’s Breath in New York inhales hope and exhales the stigma, Minnesota-hosted dinner parties in honor of a loved one, galas in Los Angeles, and the Hank Baskett Classic Golf Tournament at Trump International gather thousands together to raise money for Lung Cancer research. “I have always believed taking down Lung Cancer is going to take a village,” says Bonnie J. Addario, founder and 8-year Lung Cancer survivor. “I couldn’t be more thrilled that from SoHo to SoMa we’ve got an uprising and urgency in motion to collaborate in a celebratory way with courageous celebrity voices speaking up like Hank Baskett and Kendra Wilkinson. We’re fighting for the lives of people like William and Hank’s dad because what the world needs to know is that ANYONE CAN GET LUNG CANCER.” “This is just the beginning of what we want to do for Bonnie and the foundation,” said Kassidee Kipp, organizer of the event. “When my brother was diagnosed he was blindsided. But we quickly decided that we wanted to do something to help others impacted by the disease and to help them know they are definitely not alone.” At the fundraiser, William’s children, Katerina, 8, and William the III, who they call, “Mars,” 6, sold bracelets they made themselves raising almost $1,200 in support of their dad and his battle with Lung Cancer, said Kassidee. “His kids feel they need to do something to help their dad,” she said. “They are going to fight to find a cure for their dad and others.” What’s next? It’s called “Fun-Raising” The list of ways you can get involved is growing in leaps and bounds. Please jump on one of the bandwagons below or come up with your own. The Foundation is here to partner with you in many ways…your imagination has no limits. Lung Cancer does not stand a chance because all monies raised go directly to cutting-edge Lung Cancer research. TUNE IN TOMORROW NIGHT to “Kendra ON TOP” (WE tv) Tuesday, July 3 www.wetv.com/shows/kendra-on-top TUNE INTO THE LUNG CANCER LIVING ROOM® EVERY THIRD TUESDAY http://www.ustream.tv/channel/the-lung-cancer-living-room-support-group BJALCF–Your Next Step is the Cure® 5ks across the country www.yournextstepisthecure.org Jill’s Legacy®–Jog for Jills 5ks on College Campuses www.jogforjill.com Jill’s Legacy®-Nick’s Crispy Tacos fundraising Party-San Francisco, CA July 26 1500 Broadway, San Francisco, CA 94109 THE GREAT LUNG RUN NYC to SF July 29 www.thegreatlungrun.com Stride for Susie and Smita 5K Saratoga, CA August 26 www.strideforsusieandsmita.kintera.org Taking Lung Cancer By Storm, Seattle Storm Seattle, WA September 21 www.lungcancerfoundation.org Cruise For Your Breath Baltimore, MD September 22 www.cruiseforyourbreath.com Fighting Barry 5K, Washington, DC September 23 www.fightingbarry.com Fry’s.com Open CordeValle Golf Course, CordeValle, CA October 8 -14 www.frysopen.com A Next Step For The Cure In Honor of Fred Spanton Ashville, NC October 21 www.lungcancerfoundation.org Palisano/Benson Lung Cancer Barrel Race Santa Rosa, CA November 4 www.2012memorialbarrelrace.kintera.org Simply the Best Dinner Gala 7 San Francisco, CA November 10 www.lungcancerfoundation.org For press inquiries, contact Sheila Von Driska, Communications, at 415.357.1278 or sheila@lungcancerfoundation.org To host an event in your town, contact Jennifer Hughes, Manager of Affiliates and Independent Fundraisers, at 650.333.6936 or jhughes@lungcancerfoundation.org 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 and has raised over nine million dollars for Lung Cancer research. www.lungcancerfoundation.org About the William Marble Kipp II Foundation The WMKII Foundation is dedicated to increasing awareness of Lung Cancer and funding research for advanced treatments for the disease. William was diagnosed with stage IV Lung Cancer in August of 2011 and is currently undergoing treatment. In 2012 his family and friends established the WMKII Foundation in his honor. www.wmk2.org. The following article was originally published in LSF Magazine: Summer 2012. Copyright 2012 Life Sciences Foundation. In late 2003, Bonnie J. Addario felt a shooting pain across her chest. Her physician suspected herniated disks, but prescribed therapies failed to alleviate her discomfort. Eventually, a CT (computed tomography) scan revealed a suspicious shadow on her left lung. Bonnie was informed by doctors that she had lung cancer, and that the tumor on her aortic arch was inoperable. She was fifty-seven years old. She went home. “I would never have believed it.” Before her diagnosis, Bonnie was an energetic wife, mother, and businessperson. She had never been sick, but she knew about unexpected reversals of fortune. When she tells her life story, she begins by saying: “If someone had told me this would be my path, I would never have believed it. Bonnie graduated from high school in 1965. “College wasn’t an option for me,” she says. “My parents were first-generation immigrants. My brothers were expected to go on. I was supposed to find a man.” Bonnie married and began raising a family. The union produced three children, but ended after twelve years with the family in dire financial straits. The young homemaker lost her house and car in the aftermath, and was forced into a series of menial jobs: “I did temp work for Kelly Girl. At night, I cleaned banks with my kids.” Suddenly, fortune smiled. Bonnie landed a permanent secretarial position at the Olympian Oil Company in South San Francisco. The company provided a range of services to gas and oil producers and marketers. Bonnie worked for the President and Chairman of the Board, performed well, and was rewarded with regular promotions. She displayed a knack for management: “I never went to business school. I figured it out along the way.” In little more than a decade, she became a retail manager, a supply distributor, an oil trader, and, finally, President of the company in 1997. Along the way, she had remarried. Life was good. Bonnie Addario’s success was unlikely, but her determination carried her through. Her untimely cancer diagnosis was a second potentially ruinous disruption in her life, and another test of will. “I sat in my kitchen and tried to relax,” she recalls. “I poured myself a glass of wine and opened the newspaper. My eyes went to a small article about a new cancer care partnership between the University of California, San Francisco [UCSF] and Sequoia Hospital, close to my home in Redwood City.” The partnership was spearheaded by UCSF thoracic surgeon Dr. David Jablons. Bonnie went to see him. He reviewed her case and offered a contrary opinion about surgery to remove the stage IIIB tumor – he believed that potential benefits outweighed the risks. “It will be a challenge,” he said, “but I’m up for it if you are.” Prior to the operation, Addario received radiation treatments five days a week, and chemotherapy every Friday, at Sequoia, in order to shrink the tumor and increase chances of a good outcome. The operation was a success. The surgeon removed the top left lobe of her lung, and part of her esophagus. The tumor was excised, although one of Bonnie’s vocal cords was paralyzed, and two major arteries in her heart were damaged and had to be repaired with grafts. After the surgery, Bonnie developed vascular necrosis, a side effect of steroids prescribed to moderate weight loss. The flow of blood to her bones was impeded. The bones became brittle, and she fractured her femur and hip as a result. She underwent two major surgeries to repair the breaks, and then, a few months later, was treated for a pulmonary embolism. When it was all over, Addario’s prognosis was upgraded. The ordeal left her physically depleted, but mentally charged. “My recovery was long and arduous,” she says. “I had plenty of time to think.” "I knew I had to EDUCATE people - patients, physicians, and the public - about lung cancer." Bonnie’s first instinct after her diagnosis had been to understand her condition and recruit expert medical counsel. Her search for information had been aggravating. Institutional support and education for lung cancer patients was virtually non-existent. The lack moved Addario to contemplate executive action in a new territory: “I knew I had to educate people – patients, physicians, and the public – about lung cancer.” The cancer that the NCI forgot Bonnie embarked on advanced studies in the biology, epidemiology, and politics of lung cancer. In conversation with other patients, she learned that the ‘standard of care’ is late-stage diagnosis, a dearth of treatment options, and poorly-coordinated medical services. She also learned that research on lung cancer is relatively neglected. In 1971, President Richard Nixon declared war on cancer. He signed the National Cancer Act into law, funneled a storm surge of federal dollars toward cancer research, and empowered the National Cancer Institute [NCI] to administer the funds. The legislation became a source of hope for cancer patients and their families, but lung cancer became the disease that NCI forgot. In the United States, lung cancer claims a life every three minutes. It takes twenty people per hour, 450 people per day. The disease kills more people than breast, prostate, colon, liver, skin, and kidney cancer combined, but funding for research on lung cancer lags behind all the rest. A mere 5% of the NCI’s research support budget is allotted to lung cancer projects. In 2001, the NCI’s Lung Cancer Progress Review Group, a panel of thirty expert clinicians, scientists, industry representatives, and patient advocates, reported that funding for studies of lung cancer was “far below the levels that characterize other common malignancies and far out of proportion to its massive public health impact.” The lopsided distribution has not been rectified. A comparison with breast cancer funding is telling. In 2008, lung cancer killed 161,840 Americans. NCI expenditures for lung cancer research amounted to $1,529 per lung cancer death. Breast cancer took 40,480 lives in 2008, but the NCI spent significantly more per breast cancer death: $14,145. Addario’s view of the situation is simple: “Funding should be distributed equitably.” A review of priorities in lung cancer research uncovers further issues. Sixty-two percent of NCI funds are earmarked for studies on prevention, causes, survivorship, and outcomes. Only 38% are dedicated to early detection, diagnosis, and treatment. Addario questions the wisdom of the apportionment. Many lung cancer patients receive stage IV diagnoses: “You have lung cancer. We’ll put you on Carboplatin and Taxol. Your hair will fall out. You’ll get sick and throw up. Then you’ll die.” Seventy-five percent of lung cancer patients die within eight to ten months of diagnosis. "The world still assumes, apparently, that only smokers get lung cancer. THAT IS NOT TRUE." Addario believes that NCI’s emphasis on prevention has to do with the fact that lung cancer is stigmatized as a “smoker’s disease.” Patients diagnosed with lung cancer are regularly asked if they smoked – it’s frequently the first thing they hear when someone learns of their condition. The question is an attempt to make sense of the world, to reduce the complexity of experience and discern order, but it’s simultaneously an attempt to assign blame. If lung cancer is the result of an individual’s decision to smoke, does it deserve as much attention as other common killers – breast cancer, prostate cancer, or colon cancer? Bonnie wants to set the record straight: “The world still assumes, apparently, that only smokers get lung cancer. That’s not true.” Some individuals are genetically predisposed to the disease, and environmental factors – atmospheric pollutants such as radon or the fine particulate matter found in smog, for example – contribute to the formation of lung tumors. Eighty percent of those diagnosed with lung cancer quit smoking decades earlier or never smoked at all. Addario objects to NCI’s funding priorities because studies of causation, prevention, and outcomes will not improve deficiencies in diagnosis and treatment – areas of pressing need that are not similarly deemphasized in, for example, breast cancer research. “The breast cancer movement has done a fabulous job,” Addario says. “The five-year survival rate for breast cancer is now above 90%. We want to achieve the same kind of results for lung cancer.” The five-year survival rate for lung cancer is 15.5%, and the figure hasn’t changed in 40 years. “That’s unacceptable,” Bonnie declares. “It can’t take another 40 years to make a difference. This needs to change!” Institutional impediments When Bonnie recovered her strength, Dr. Jablons asked her to join the UCSF Thoracic Oncology Cabinet, a multi-disciplinary advisory board established to help physicians with challenging or unusual cases, and to spearhead fundraising efforts for university departments involved in oncology research and care. Jablons spied an opportunity to add, in a single stroke, an experienced executive who understood organizational realities, and a cancer survivor who would infuse board deliberations with the patient’s perspective. Bonnie was introduced to Wells Whitney, the board chair. Whitney was also a patient of Jablons. Seven years earlier, he had been diagnosed with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer, and told that he had 10 to 12 months to live. Like Bonnie, his diagnosis spurred him to action. A scientist by training – he has a PhD in materials science from MIT — Whitney walked away from his job as Chief Scientist at Raychem, and immersed himself in scientific and medical literatures on lung cancer. He participated in the design of his own treatment regimen, and, against the odds, reduced the size of his tumor by 50%. The result qualified him to receive an operation usually reserved for early-stage patients. Bonnie recognized that she and Wells had much in common. Jablons’ intuition regarding Addario’s efficacy was soon confirmed. “My first assignment,” she recalls, “involved writing to my friends and asking them for money. I raised $75,000 in two weeks. The UCSF board probably thought, ‘We’ve got a live one here.’” But Bonnie didn’t want her efforts to begin and end with her checkbook. She wanted to do more than maintain the institution. In her view, doctors, scientists, and administrators were too comfortable with the status quo, and disinclined to consider radical reforms to established modes of research and treatment. Addario felt constrained by academia’s bureaucratic inertia. "That's unacceptable. It can't take another 40 years to make a difference. THIS NEEDS TO CHANGE!" “Informed patients live longer” Bonnie was eager to transform the ways in which lung cancer is understood and treated, and skeptical that universities could serve as catalysts of change. She decided to create a separate organization with a threefold mission – to provide patient support and advocacy, to educate and dispel misconceptions about the disease, and to heighten public awareness of the relative neglect of lung cancer research. With assistance from Whitney and Jablons, Bonnie established the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation (BJALCF) in March of 2006. A few months later, the foundation made a public debut with a fundraising gala for lung cancer research in San Francisco. The evening drew a large crowd and raised an amount that was impressive (although “not nearly enough”). Bonnie was launched on her mission to fix a broken system. She was determined to improve the dismal statistics on lung cancer, one patient at a time. The BJALCF’s initial efforts were directed toward patient education and empowerment. The foundation’s first public awareness campaign urged patients to get CT imaging scans for early detection. The message (“CT Scan – think of it as a mammogram for your lungs”) was emblazoned in glowing pink and green on the sides of buses and highway billboards nationwide. The BJALCF soon refocused, however, and began organizing a diverse resource network through which patients and families could access information, support, and services. “We wanted to help people find their own best care,” Bonnie explains. “We connected them to experts, caregivers, and service providers at multiple sites. We focused on teaching people about what was available.” The goal was to help patients become their own advocates – just as Whitney and Addario had, with positive results. “Information is powerful,” says Bonnie. “Informed patients live longer. They just do.”
“If money were no object…” Patient empowerment was one piece of the puzzle. Addressing inequities in biomedical research was another. Bonnie saw that embedded attitudes and practices in the biomedical establishment needed to be perturbed and recast, and that the BJALCF needed to recruit thought leaders in lung cancer research to the cause. In order to make an impact on the conduct of laboratory and clinical research, the Foundation would need a bigger stage and the firm support of influential experts in science and medicine. Toward these ends, the BJALCF organized a meeting of world leaders in lung cancer research and care. On November 9, 2007 the best and the brightest in cancer research gathered in Genentech Hall on UCSF’s new Mission Bay campus for the first annual BJALCF Lung Cancer Summit. Wells Whitney served as master of ceremonies. Attendees included representatives from the NIH, Genentech, CancerCare, an oncology patient support organization, and Changing Our World, a philanthropy and fundraising consulting group. The keynote speaker for the two-day conference was Michael Milken, financier, philanthropist, cancer survivor, and founder of FasterCures, a self-described ‘action tank’ working to improve biomedical research. The all-star roster of physicians and cancer researchers on hand included Jablons, Dr. Pasi Jänne of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Dr. Mark G. Kris of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Dr. Fred Marcus of Sequoia Hospital and Dr. Harvey Pass of the NYU School of Medicine. As the researchers rose in succession to talk about their research, Bonnie realized that ingrained conference habits are hard to break. The summit was struggling with a terminal illness of its own: ‘death by powerpoint.’ Addario intervened, drew a curtain on the long string of self-congratulatory progress reports, and refocused the meeting. “We don’t want to know what you’re doing,” she said. “We want to know what you would change.” She challenged the attending scientists, physicians, lung cancer patients and survivors, venture capitalists, pharmaceutical industry executives, and government officials to answer one question: “If money were no object, what would you do to increase lung cancer survival rates?” Bonnie encouraged the group to momentarily forget the obstacles and imagine the possibilities. To be continued... Part II recounts how Bonnie J. Addario, in pursuit of improvements in lung cancer research and care, has pushed patient activism in new directions. She has formulated original ends for the BJALCF and devised innovative strategies for achieving them. Stay tuned. 6/20/2012 @TheHankBaskett & @TeamDraft Teamed Up w/ @BonnieJAddario and Raised $145K to Drive the #1 Cancer Killer Off the MapRead NowSAN FRANCISCO, June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The former NFL duo is rallying a star-studded list of Hollywood and athletic celebrities to join them in their personal journey to tackle lung cancer Hank: "I'm here to support Bonnie's Foundation because lung cancer is personal to me. It has swooped in and attacked my dad, & I understand how brutally destructive this cancer is & how many people are waging war to battle it." Chris: "I am honored to be here and passionate about helping an organization like the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation that is leading the way, and pushing for immediate answers - not future hypotheses, for people like my wife, who never smoked and was in great physical shape, but was diagnosed with lung cancer and died less than a year later. Bonnie is demanding answers NOW!" Hank: "Every breath you take--the fuel of your body starts with your lungs. So take care of your lungs because you'll need them--more than you'll ever imagine. Trust me." Bonnie: "I get the breathing thing...I know it first hand and I know what it feels like when you can't. It is our FUEL. Without it, life is terribly compromised...just having the support of Chris and Hank takes my breath away--in the good way!" While the U.S. Open was in full swing just 15 minutes away at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, 144 heroes including NFL stars Chris Draft and Hank Baskett were championing the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation's Seventh Annual "Lung Cancer: Drive it off the Earth" Golf Tournament at Alistair MacKenzie-designed Green Hills Country Club. This year's tournament raised more than $145,000 for this least-funded, yet most deadly cancer, which will go toward Lung Cancer research. For both players, lung cancer is personal. Baskett, signed by the Colts and went on to play five years in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, and the Philadelphia Eagles is helping his father battle the disease. Draft, played 12 years in the NFL for the Chicago Bears, San Francisco 49ers, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, St. Louis Rams, and the Buffalo Bills recently lost his wife to the disease. Together, they are tackling lung cancer by raising awareness. "We're proud that Hank Baskett and Chris Draft are making a bold statement against Lung Cancer," says Bonnie J. Addario, founder and a Lung Cancer survivor. "We're so honored to have Hank and Chris--and their football and Hollywood friends--on our team helping to raise much-needed funding and awareness for Lung Cancer and the message that ANYONE CAN GET LUNG CANCER." The reception cocktail party, silent and live auctions and raffle proved that everyone was a winner. Addario, one of the rare Lung Cancer survivors and founder of the Foundation, welcomed Draft and Baskett into the Foundation's family at dinner. "I'm so proud to have Hank and Chris in our family," said Bonnie. "Hank, I loved meeting your Dad at the tournament you held for us in May at the Trump National Golf Club. The only way I can describe him is he's a GREAT BIG HUG and your mom is a pistol. The leadership and courage you and Chris are bringing to the team has grown way beyond the football field. Thank you for stepping up and helping us turn Lung Cancer into a manageable, survivable disease." There wasn't a dry eye in the house after an airing of "Chris Draft, Love and Loss," -ESPN's touching profile of Chris and his late wife Keasha, and their commitment to dance, smile, and live as they fought lung cancer together. As a former Charlotte Hornets Honeybee dancer and member of Clemson University's Rally Cat dance squad, Keasha was an energetic vibrant young woman who had never smoked when she was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer in December 2010. At the time, her only "symptom" was a slight shortness of breath a few days earlier. Despite the diagnosis and knowing the long odds they faced, Keasha and Chris decided to fight back. On November 27, 2011, standing side-by-side, they launched Team Draft together at their wedding. One month later, Keasha lost her courageous fight and died at the age of 38. "The only way to tackle the issue of lung cancer is to do it as a solid team bringing together everyone from the patients and caregivers to the researchers and the doctors who are demanding that the results so far are not good at all," said Draft. "There's no one group that has a monopoly on this and that is why I was drawn to Bonnie and the foundation because they are working as a team with the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI) and their Lung Cancer Living Room® series. What separates them is that Bonnie knows there is a sense of urgency. Keasha had one year from her diagnosis, so I don't listen when someone says 'we're working on it." That's not good enough." First place winners of the sold-out tournament were Michael Vasquez, Greg Gabbani, Josh Lutz and many-time winner Eddie Hernandez with an astounding 54. Second place winners were Rich Deponte, Stan Colombo, Dan Poncabra and long-time faithful major donor Mo Townsley with a score of 55. The tournament's presenting sponsor's team from the Burns Family Foundation and Mobius Fit was led by Rob Dean and the foursome including Dave Engel, Ross Headley and Jeff Lokey came in third with a score of 56 (26 back 9). To view select photos from the tournament, go to: http://tinyurl.com/BJAgolf2012 To join the team and host an event or golf tournament in your town, contact Jennifer Hughes, Manager of Affiliates and Independent Fundraisers, at 650.333.6936 or jhughes@lungcancerfoundation.org For press inquiries, contact Sheila Von Driska, Communications, at 415.357.1278 or sheila@lungcancerfoundation.org 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 (c) 3 non-profit organization. www.lungcancerfoundation.org About The Chris Draft Family Foundation and Team Draft The Chris Draft Family Foundation is a 501(c) 3 non-profit corporation dedicated to strengthening communities by empowering families to live healthy lifestyles. The Foundation focuses on several initiatives with overarching themes that stress the importance of education, healthy lifestyles, character development, personal responsibility, self-discipline, and physical fitness. To learn more about the Chris Draft Family Foundation, please visit www.chrisdraftfamilyfoundation.org . SOURCE Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation Copyright (C) 2012 PR Newswire. All rights reserved 5/30/2012 ATTN: #BayArea #Golfers! Sports Celebs to Tee Off on #LungCancer at #Millbrae, #CA EventRead NowOriginally published on the Millbrae Patch by Gideon Rubin - May 30th, 2012 Proceeds from the Seventh Annual Lung Cancer: Drive It off the Earth Golf Tournament, will benefit the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation. The event will be held on June 11 at Green Hills Country Club. Two NFL players and an award winning Bay Area sports anchor will be among the special guests who will appear at a charity golf tournament in Millbrae next month. Wide receiver Hank Baskett, linebacker Chris Draft and KGO-TV's Mike Shuman will participate in the Seventh Annual Lung Cancer: Drive It off the Earth Golf Tournament on June 11 at Green Hills Country Club. Baskett has played for three teams in a six-year NFL career that includes an appearance in the 2010 Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts. Baskett co-stars in the reality show "Kendra" with his supermodel wife, Kendra Wilkinson. Draft played for Stanford and has been on seven teams in a 13-year NFL career including a stint with the 49ers in 1999. Shumann, himself a former NFL player whose six-year career included two stints with the 49ers, has become a Bay Area radio and television broadcasting fixture whose distinguished career includes winning an Emmy for anchoring KGO-TV. The event will also feature "Hooked on Golf" radio program creator Mitch Juricich. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation. For more information contaact: golf@lungcancerfoundation.org. 4/20/2012 Attention, Washington D.C.: Help Beat Lung Cancer - Jog for Jill on Sunday, April 22nd! #lungcancerRead NowCheck out Jill's Legacy on MSNBC... Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Register or donate here.
|
Details
|