LUNGevity to host annual Breathe Deep DuPage event Sept. 8 for lung cancer awareness

On Sunday, Sept. 8, LUNGevity Foundation, the nation's largest organization dedicated to research for the early detection and treatment of lung cancer, is hosting Breathe Deep DuPage, a community walk and fundraising event, at the Naperville Riverwalk Grand Pavillion, 912 Honorary Sindt Memorial Court.

Check-in opens at 9 a.m. with the walk beginning promptly at 10:15 a.m.

Lung cancer is the most common cancer type globally and the number-one leading cause of cancer deaths among both men and women.

Annually, the disease kills more people than colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers combined, but to date lung cancer receives only about 6% of federal research funding.

As a result, the five-year survival rate is only 19%, but if it is caught before it spreads, the change for 5-year survival improves drastically.

The donated funds from Breathe Deep DuPage will support the most promising research into early detection and more effective treatments.

Each year, Breathe Deep DuPage is proud to recognize and honor several local area lung cancer survivors.

Event coordinators Kelly Lawler, a resident of Naperville, and Amanda von Ebers will be walking with their mother Bonnie von Ebers, a stage 4 lung cancer survivor.

Thanks to the groundbreaking research and funding that organizations like LUNGevity provide, Bonnie is a recipient of immunotherapy treatment, which was approved as a 2nd-line non-small-cell lung cancer treatment just months after she was diagnosed in 2015. The hope of Breathe Deep DuPage is to continue honoring lung cancer survivors and those we have lost in the community.

LUNGevity's goal is to save the lives of more than 234,000 Americans newly diagnosed with lung cancer each year. Breathe Deep DuPage is one of more than 80 events around the country to benefit LUNGevity and raise awareness of the prominence of lung cancer and the need for increased research funding.

Registration for the event is $25; $15 for seniors, age 60 or older, and students with a valid ID; and $10 for youth, ages 5 to 13.

Lung cancer survivors and children under 5 are free. All participants will receive a T-shirt and will enjoy snacks, a DJ, a kids area and a raffle and silent auction after the event.

To register or make a donation, visit lungevity.donordrive.com or call (312) 407-6100.

Proceeds from the event will benefit LUNGevity and will fund research to achieve its goal to increase survivorship of lung cancer.

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 by providing community, support and education for all those affected by the disease. Their vision is a world where no one dies of lung cancer. For more information about LUNGevity Foundation, visit LUNGevity.org.