The Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation’s (ALCF) primary goal is making lung cancer a chronically managed disease by 2023.
A patient-funded, patient-focused and patient-driven organization, the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation intends to achieve its goal through supporting groundbreaking research and bringing together physicians, patients, researchers and industry partners to identify solutions. Its namesake and founder, Bonnie Addario, survived advanced stage lung cancer herself and advocates to de-stigmatize a disease that increasingly strikes healthy, non-smoking young adults. Since 2006, the foundation has raised more than $25 million for research.
ALCF’s “partner” foundation is the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI), an international research consortium of 21 world-class academic and community centers in the U.S. and Europe. Through shared research infrastructures and centrally managed scientific projects, ALCMI’s researchers pool their knowledge, specimens and data to understand lung cancer’s molecular base and accelerate the development of targeted therapies. ALCMI’s Genomics of Young Lung Cancer Study is currently underway with patients participating from around the globe.
“My husband Paul is 37 years old and has stage IV lung cancer,” says Lucy Kalanithi, MD. “Even though we are both physicians, we are still hungry for support and guidance. We’ve found that in the foundation. As physicians, we particularly respect its commitment to advancing robust science.”
“In addition, at the foundation’s lung cancer patient support group, Bonnie and her family encourage patients to participate in clinical trials when it is medically appropriate,“ Lucy adds. “The foundation is not only reducing lung cancer stigma in the U.S., but also reducing the stigma of research participation among patients.” In April 2015, ALCF and partners announced the Clinical Trial Innovation Prize, an online campaign to crowdsource actionable methods that help double the participation rate in clinical trials.
