Bowtie and Scarf Monday
Tie One On for the Cause
This Week's Cause: LUNGevity
LUNGevity Foundation is firmly committed to making an immediate impact on increasing quality of life and survivorship of people with lung cancer by accelerating research into early detection and more effective treatments, as well as providing community, support, and education for all those affected by the disease.
We focus on research because the link between research spending and improved survival is clear. Survival rates have dramatically improved for colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers over the last several decades in step with the exponential growth in their research spending. Our goal is to accelerate progress for lung cancer in the same way, in order to dramatically improve on the current 17% five-year survival rate.
To date, LUNGevity has funded 115 research projects at 58 institutions in 23 states. LUNGevity research investments focus on early detection, because survival rates rise when lung cancer is detected while still localized. We also focus on more effective treatment approaches—getting the right treatment to the right patient at the right time to help people with lung cancer live longer and better.
Contributions can be made in the office of the Vice President for Student Services (110).
Lung Cancer Statistics
- One in 15 people in the US will be diagnosed with lung cancer in their lifetime.
- More than 221,000 people in the US will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year, with a new diagnosis every 2.5 minutes.
- 60%-65% of all new lung cancer diagnoses are among people who have never smoked or are former smokers.
- 10%-15% of lung cancer cases are in people who have never smoked.
- Lung cancer accounts for 13% of all new cancer diagnoses but 27% of all cancer deaths.
- Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death, regardless of gender or ethnicity, taking almost 160,000 lives each year.
- More lives are lost to lung cancer than to colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers combined.
- Lung cancer has been the leading cancer killer of women since 1987, killing almost twice as many women as breast cancer.
- Only 17% of all people diagnosed with lung cancer will survive 5 years or more, BUT if it's caught before it spreads, the chance for 5-year survival improves dramatically.
- Only 6% of federal government dollars spent on cancer research are spent on lung cancer research.
- The FDA approved 6 new lung cancer drugs in 2015.