LOS ANGELES, Sept. 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Actress and lung cancer advocate Valerie Harper and her husband Tony Cacciotti, actor Elliott Gould, and leaders in entertainment, politics, business and medicine will come together at the Lung Cancer Foundation of America's(LCFA) "Lung Cancer – Bring on the Change!" event on Sunday, September 29, 2013 from 5 PM – 7 PM. The evening is hosted by producer Marta Kauffman and composer Michael Skloff in their Hancock Park home. Ms. Harper, who is currently fighting lung cancer that has occurred in the lining of her brain, is the special guest speaker. The evening is designed to bring attention to and raise funding for lung cancer, the USA's number one cancer killer for both men and women.
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"It means so much to Tony and me to be able to support LCFA in its efforts to raise awareness and research funding for lung cancer. I'm still here, living, laughing, loving, dancing because of lung cancer research — but the only way I can be here in six months or six years is through new treatment options, or hopefully a cure," said Ms. Harper.
Kim Norris, a lung cancer widow and the president and co-founder of LCFA added, "Thanks to Marta and Michael, Val and Tony, and all the other co-hosts and supporters, we've had an overwhelming response to this event. I believe that changing the course of this devastating disease is absolutely possible. Millions of people have been deeply affected by lung cancer but because of an overall 5-year survival rate of only 16%, there are few survivors to stand up and speak out in support of research funding for the disease. That's why this evening is so very important, and inspirational."
Guests will learn that lung cancer is the USA's leading cancer killer, killing almost twice as many women as breast cancer and three times as many men as prostate cancer. The poor survival rate for lung cancer is a direct result of the lack of funding for lung cancer research. It is estimated that over 60% of new lung cancer diagnoses are in non-smokers – a combination of 45-50% former smokers (many who quit 10, 20, even 30 years prior to the onset of lung cancer) and 15% of people who have never smoked. Guests will be introduced to lung cancer advocates like Val, lung cancer researchers and the work of LCFA — an organization that exists to advocate for research funding.
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ABOUT LUNG CANCER FOUNDATION OF AMERICA
LCFA was established by two lung cancer survivors and a lung cancer widow. Although their backgrounds varied, they came to the same realization – the poor survival rate for lung cancer is a direct result of the lack of funding for lung cancer research. Working with many of the top lung cancer researchers and clinicians in the country, they have seen these experts attempt to diligently unlock the secrets unique to lung cancer. They have also witnessed the inordinate amount of time researchers spend trying to secure funding for the research, which distracts them from their primary research function. The abysmal state of funding also discourages new lung cancer researchers who, instead, gravitate to well-funded programs, leaving a potential gaping hole in future research programs. LCFA's mission is the dramatic improvement in survivorship of lung cancer patients through the funding of transformative science, with the ultimate goal of curing the disease. To accomplish this, LCFA will work to raise both the funds and the national profile of lung cancer in order to substantially increase support of innovative and groundbreaking research efforts. http://www.lcfamerica.org.
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