Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation Makes $15,000 Donation to Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute

The national, virtual lung cancer institute is dedicated to accelerating the discovery, development, and delivery of new and more efficient treatment options for lung cancer patients.

March 17th, 2009 (Atlanta, GA)

Today, The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation announced their first donation explicitly geared toward lung cancer treatment research. The foundation is donating $15,000 to the newly-created Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI).

ALCMI was established by lung cancer survivor Bonnie J. Addario in 2008. A 501(c)3 non-profit organization, it was created to be a national, virtual lung cancer institute – an honest third-party broker that will develop and direct high-quality tissue specimen repositories, data systems, and foster collaboration.

“Our mission statement includes advocating for research,” said foundation president Joe Gaeta. “We believe that ALCMI and its collaboration model will advance the research and treatment of lung cancer and finally begin to increase the survival rate of this horrible disease – a survival rate that has remained virtually unchanged for nearly 40 years. We are extremely confident that ALCMI is the single-best use of our research funds.”

“We are eternally grateful to the Gaeta foundation for their extremely generous donation and, more importantly, for their historic endorsement and partnership with ALCMI,” said ALCMI founder, Bonnie Addario. “Thanks to donations like this, we move one step closer to increasing the survival rate of lung cancer. We are so very happy to have the Gaetas join us in our common fight.”

The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation is grateful for all of their donors who have supported them since their inception in the fall of 2007. “Without the generosity of our supporters, we could not have made this investment in the future of lung cancer research. We thank each and every one of them,” said Joe Gaeta.

About The Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute

Concerned by the continued lack of meaningful progress against Lung Cancer, in 2006-2007, the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation assembled the field’s foremost researchers, clinicians, and business leaders from academic and community medical centers, biopharmaceutical companies, and the investment community in order to ask a fundamental question: “If money for research and development was not a barrier, and a true collaboration could be achieved, what would you require to achieve a cure for Lung Cancer in the least amount of time?”

The overwhelming consensus response was to establish a national, virtual Lung Cancer institute—an honest third-party broker that would develop and direct high-quality tissue specimen repositories, data systems, and fostered collaborations. As a result, Lung Cancer survivor Bonnie J. Addario established the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI) in 2008 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

ALCMI is dedicated to catalyzing and accelerating the discovery, development and delivery of new and more effective treatment options for Lung Cancer patients.
Contact: Tony Addario, CEO, tony@lungcancerfoundation.org or Sheila Von Driska, Secretary, svondriska@alcmi.net

About The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation

Established in the fall of 2007, The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation was created to raise awareness, to educate the public, and to be an advocate for research. They also strive to eliminate the stigma of lung cancer and support survivors and their loved ones in our local community.

A life long non-smoker, Joan Gaeta was a devoted wife, teacher, and mother of five. Diagnosed in early 2004, she fought a three and a half year battle before succumbing to the cancer in July of 2007.

Contact: Joe Gaeta, President, (404) 435-7376, gaetafoundation@gmail.com.

Second Annual “Dancing For Joan” Raises $35,000

Marietta, Georgia Event Brings Together over 200 People to Help End Lung Cancer
Mar 03, 2009 – (Atlanta, GA)

The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation announced today that the organization raised $35,000 at its second annual gala event on Saturday, February 21st, 2009. Hours of music, dancing, dining, and silent auction were the order of evening - along with some very important information about lung cancer.

The event was emceed by CNN’s Nancy Grace. Ms. Grace also promoted the foundation on her television program throughout the weeks before and after the event.

Party-goers viewed an important informational video entitled “This is Lung Cancer” which detailed the unfortunate statistics about the disease and its lack of significant research funding. The presentation also put a human face on the number one cancer killer in the world.

Honorary Chairman Paul Scheinberg, Chief of Staff at St. Joseph's Hospital in Atlanta spoke to the crowd as well, highlighting the need for much more awareness and research funding.

The specific use of the money raised will be announced by the foundation in the coming weeks. The information will be publicly available at their web site, www.forjoan.org. It will also be communicated to their supporters individually.

AWARDS

Honored with the 2009 Hummingbird Award for Dedication was Mr. William Erb of Atlanta for his $5 million donation to Saint Joseph’s Hospital as well as for his subsidizing the lung cancer screenings of his employees. The 2009 Hummingbird Award for Community Service went to Mr. Tom Simon of Atlanta for his extensive work with lung cancer support groups in and around Atlanta.

IMPORTANT FACTS ABOUT LUNG CANCER

Even if you have never smoked, you can get lung cancer. 60% of new cases are now diagnosed in non-smokers and former smokers. Lung cancer is the #1 cancer killer of both men and women. Every three minutes, someone is diagnosed with the disease. It kills more people each year than breast cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, liver cancer, melanoma, and kidney cancer combined. It surpassed breast cancer of the #1 killer of women in 1987. The five year survival rate for lung cancer is still only 15% - the same as it was over 35 years ago. By contrast, breast cancer now has a five year survival rate of well over 85% and prostate cancer has over a 99% survival rate.

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Established in the fall of 2007, The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation was created to raise awareness, to educate the public, and to be an advocate for research. They also strive to eliminate the stigma of lung cancer and support survivors and their loved ones in our local community.

A life long non-smoker, Joan Gaeta was a devoted wife, teacher, and mother of five. Diagnosed in early 2004, she fought a three and a half year battle before succumbing to the cancer in July of 2007.

If you would like more information about this foundation and this annual event - or to schedule and interview with Joe Gaeta - please call 404-435-7376 or send an e-mail to gaetafoundation@gmail.com. You may also visit www.forjoan.org.

Dance toward a lung cancer cure

By Jennifer Brett
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Thursday, February 12, 2009

Not quite a year after Joan Gaeta died in 2007 of lung cancer, her husband and five children threw a party to remember her and raise awareness about the disease that stole her from them.
The lifelong nonsmoker died at 68. Because she and husband Richard never met a dance floor they didn’t love, the family decided “Dancing for Joan” would be a fitting theme for the event. Last year’s inaugural bash raised more than $40,000 for The Joan Gaeta Lung Cancer Foundation, which sponsored Saint Joseph’s Hospital’s fourth annual Atlanta Lung Cancer Awareness Run and Walk. The foundation also supports a monthly lung cancer support group at the hospital.

The second annual “Dancing for Joan” starts at 7 p.m. Feb. 21 at The Pavilion of East Cobb. CNN’s Nancy Grace emcees and Paul Scheinberg, chief of staff at St. Joseph’s, serves as honorary chairman.

Tickets are $100 each, and the event features dinner, dancing and a cash bar. It’s cocktail attire. Wear your dancing shoes, too.

For information, call 404-435-7376, e-mail gaetafoundation@gmail.com or see http://www.jglcf.org

Congratulations to our Georgia neighbors, Ed and Linda Levitt, advocates of LCA!

Washington, D.C. [June 16, 2008]— Today, Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA) praised Georgia State Senators John Wiles (R-37th), Chip Rogers (R-21st), Judson Hill (R-32nd), Steve Thompson (D-33rd) and Doug Stoner (D-6th) for introducing Georgia Senate Resolution 1215 (S.R. 1215).
Adopted by the GA Senate at the end of the 2008 legislative session, S.R. 1215 recognizes the tireless work and dedication of LCA-GA Chairs Ed and Linda Levitt to the lung cancer movement.
Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in the United States and in Georgia, taking more lives than breast, prostate and colon cancers--combined. This year alone, over 4,500 Georgians will die from the disease. Of those diagnosed over 60% are former smokers or never smoked at all.