Breath of Hope Kentucky

Raising Awareness About Lung Cancer
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WHITE RIBBON 5K RACE FOR RESEARCH 2023

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EARLY DETECTION SAVES LIVES - KNOW YOUR RISKS

Who is currently eligible for lung cancer screenings?        

The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force recommends yearly lung cancer screenings with low-dose CT scans for people who have a history of heavy smoking and currently smoke, or have quit within the past 15 years, and are between 55 and 80 years old.

Call your doctor to see if you are eligible. To read more about who should be screened for lung cancer CLICK HERE.

If I do not smoke am I also at risk for getting lung cancer?

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers and there are varying factors that can play a role in your overall lung health and risk of developing the disease. Anyone with lungs can get lung cancer. Click below to understand more about radon levels in your area, early symptoms of lung cancer, and other risk factors. Do not ever delay in seeking medical attention, early intervention can make all the difference in your overall survival. If you feel something is just not right and you want to continue to seek answers, a second opinon is always an option in being your own best health advocate.

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OUR AWARENESS VIDEOS

United Voices - Kentucky

Kentucky Lung Cancer survivors speak out to raise awareness that anyone can get lung cancer in an effort to help erase the stigma. Their lives tell a different story than how you may view lung cancer.

Have you Ever Thought that Much About Lung Cancer?

This journey did not start out easy and my recurrence this summer placed a small bump in the road along the way; however, there have been many positive and rewarding pieces of my journey with the most important one being all of the amazing fellow survivors and families who have lost loved ones to this disease I have met along the way! Keep on helping me raise awareness about this deadly cancer...your support and voice does make a difference in this fight!

United Voices 2020

Most survivors are told from the time of their diagnosis there is no cure for the stage of their disease, so they must rely on advancements in treatments and medicine for the rest of their lives. That comes with its own set of challenges because lung cancer remains one of the lowest federally funded cancers, despite being the deadliest. This awareness is necessary for progress to happen. Help us erase the stigma so we can move towards increasing survival rates of lung cancer.

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Stories of Survival

Real People. Real Stories. Our Breath of Hope.

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Just two patients from Kentucky trying to use their life experiences as lung cancer patients to raise awareness about @younglungcancer at #WCLC24. Our efforts are to expand conversations around the disease and support what research is uncovering about emerging, increasing, and accelerating influences impacting the expanding and diverse disease demographic across the globe. No-one should receive an incurable, stage IV cancer diagnosis without any understanding they could even be at risk. Shout out to @bbye0610, a co-founder of YLCI, passion and driving force behind this movement and for creating this amazing re-cap of our whirlwind experience!
While targeted therapy medications are a wonderful means of disease management, medication side effects often interfere with quality of life for many patients. Something as important as getting good quality sleep can have an impact on many aspects of a patient’s life and heath. Leah and Lindi are not only lung cancer patients but they have become friends and passionate advocates. Having others you can talk to and lean on for support can make all difference in world. In this conversation they describe something they always referred to as “crazy Tagrisso dreams.” Deciding to make a simple change in when they took their medication ended up being the right choice for them. Be sure to always open up with your medical team and also lean on other patients when you feel your medication side effects are becoming too much to handle. There may be a solution and often it is easier to solve or treat than you may think. Stayed tuned for more of these important patient conversations. @younglungcancer @leah_l_phillips @lmcampbell64
Met with a friend and his wife last week to reassure them waiting for biomarker results was the right path. The wait, the fear, the uncertainty is hard, even on retired physicians.
Even though she was a nurse, nothing could have prepared Brandy for her husband Bo’s lung cancer diagnosis. Despite being healthy and having no history of tobacco use, Bo was diagnosed with stage IV, ALK+ NSCLC at just 41 years old. They remain positive, united, spend a lot of time traveling and are grateful his targeted therapy treatment is currently keeping his cancer from progressing. Increases in funding, more research, and expanded treatment options remain Bo’s greatest hope for living to experience more life with Brandy and his son. @younglungcancer #exhalehope
The journey for younger patients or those who do not qualify for screening often results in a delayed diagnosis and late stage disease. This leaves patients searching for answers as to why they didn’t know they could get lung cancer regardless of age or smoking history. #anyonewithlungs
Kentucky survivor, Leah, was not diagnosed with lung cancer until it had already spread, was IV already stage IV, and was treatable but incurable. Her symptoms were not recognized in the health care setting as lung cancer even after many trips to the doctor as her concerns about her symptoms lingered and intensified. She was young, healthy, and has never smoked…so her concerns were dismissed as anything but lung cancer. Lung cancer can happen to #anyonewithlungs regardless of age or smoking history. Know the symptoms, understand additional toxicity influences, be persistent about your health and seek a second opinion if you’re not getting the tests and answers you need about your health, and test your home for radon. Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in never smokers. #cancer #UniteToFightKY #bohky #younglungcancer #radon #stageIVneedsmore
Brittany shares her @retpositive lung cancer diagnosis journey and how, despite the good news of having a lung cancer mutation, the reality remains…without research and treatment options to stop the mutation from driving the cancer…it will find a way to outsmart the drug requiring a new plan of action that may…or may or may not be available. @younglungcancer #retpositivenonsmallcelllungcancer #younglungcancer #researchmatters #oncogene #cancer #stageIVneedsmore Watch full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5bMyN_v3U0
Bo never expected to face a stage IV lung cancer diagnosis at just 41 years old considering he was healthy just months prior with no known risk factors! He hopes being open about his journey will encourage other men to do the same. Retirement is a big decision, especially at such a young age. He shares some powerful thoughts and emotions a year out as he reflects on the value of time with family and the power of giving back.
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Beautiful tribute to the RET+ NSCLC patient community featuring one of our Kentucky survivor’s, Brittany, and a beautiful tribute to Michael Ferlan - the brother of one of our board member’s @maryeferlan whose passed away from RET+ lung cancer in 2014 when there were no FDA approved targeted therapy treatments options available to treat RET alterations.
Kentucky Survivor, Brittany, needs help spreading the word! Her life saving drug is at risk of no longer being available to her & others diagnosed with RET+ lung cancer! Please share to help bring attention to her story so this TKI can continue to save lives! Brittany was only 36 years old when her beautiful life with her husband and son took a shocking turn! They discovered she had lung cancer due to a mutation that caused cells in her lungs to develop into cancer, even though she never smoked and had no other risk factors. She must now rely on treatment to target this mutation for the rest of her life in order to keep the cancer from progressing! #anyonewithlungs
I get the fun part of signing the checks to send this money we receive in donations back out into the lung cancer community to fund desperately needed research for mutation-driven lung cancer! Many of these patients who rely on this research do not qualify for early detection screening so by the time the disease is discovered in their otherwise seemingly healthy body, it has already advanced and is considered incurable. They are immediately thrust into reactive mode and must come to grips with the fact that their future now relies on advances in research and expanded treatment options in order for them to LIVE WITH the disease, not DIE FROM it! I couldn’t do any of this without the help of my husband, my board members who lost loved ones to mutation-driven lung cancer, and all my family members, friends, and volunteers who have supported this crazy idea I had 5 years ago to start my own nonprofit! #bohky #anyonewithlungs #ResearchMatters

We would like to thank these organizations who have partnered with us or supported us in our efforts to improve the survival statistics of lung cancer 

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