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Hope it was a wonderful 4th of July holiday for all! Although it’s the height of summer, we have fall on our minds – specifically, our annual Breathe Deep TOGETHER activities that usher in Lung Cancer Awareness Month. Please take a moment out of your summer day to start planning what YOU will do this fall to help drive awareness and change, build community, and breathe deep together with us.
Be Part of the Movement! Mark Your Calendar for November 8
LUNGevity Foundation’s Breathe Deep TOGETHER returns this fall, and we need you! This powerful nationwide event unites communities in Boston, DC, NYC, and throughout the country through Breathe Deep ANYWHERE to launch Lung Cancer Awareness Month with purpose and momentum.
Together, we raise awareness about lung cancer, honor those we’ve lost, uplift survivors, and fuel breakthroughs in research, early detection, and survivorship. Whether you walk, volunteer, or donate, your participation directly supports lifesaving lung cancer research and programs that bring real hope to patients and families.
Two Words: Clinical. Trials.
Clinical trials are essential to advancing cancer care, but myths and misunderstandings still prevent many people from considering them. On June 26, LUNGevity proudly represented the lung cancer community at Lilly’s “Two Words” Clinical Trial Awareness Event in New York’s Grand Central Station. We connected with the public to share the importance of lung cancer clinical trials, answer questions, and help make participation feel more accessible and empowering. Learn more about lung cancer clinical trials.
On Tuesday, July 15, we welcome Jacquelyn E. Nixon, IASLC PRA, a lung cancer survivor and president of Citizens for Radioactive Radon Reduction (CR3). Jacquelyn will discuss how she works with communities to highlight the dangers of living with and breathing high levels of radon gas and its connection to lung cancer. During her presentation, Jacquelyn will show how radon education bridges the gap between health, cancer care, and overall well-being.
In case you missed it last month, Carolyn J. Presley, MD, MHS, joined us to talk about her work in geriatric oncology and engaging the elderly in cancer care. Read a summary or watch the full presentation here.
Small Cell SMASHERS Fireside Chat
Check our calendar or follow us on social media to find out when the next event will be.
Each month, the Small Cell SMASHERS Fireside Chats highlight the latest discoveries and breakthroughs in SCLC. Hosted by Misty Shields, MD, PhD, IU Health, and LUNGevity's Ann Fish-Steagall, RN, they welcome a new expert each month to share information and answer audience questions.
In June we heard from Michael Gieske, MD, St. Elizabeth Cancer Center, and Nasser Hanna, MD, Indiana University School of Medicine, on "Lung Cancer Screening: Eligibility, Engaging Healthcare Systems, and Impact for Lung Cancer Including SCLC." You can watch the recording here, as well as all previous Fireside Chats on the SCLC Patient Gateway.
Discover What’s Next in Lung Cancer
Registration is now open for LUNGevity's (free and virtual) International Lung Cancer Survivorship Conference on September 26-27, 2025. Learn about the latest breakthroughs in lung cancer care, treatment, and survivorship from world-renowned experts in the field.
From Tokyo to Cape Town: Racing to Stop Lung Cancer
LUNGevity is expanding its international reach as an Official Charity Partner with two incredible races in 2026 — the Tokyo Marathon on March 1 and Sanlam Cape Town Marathon on May 24!
Tokyo marks our fifth of seven Abbott World Marathon Majors, and Cape Town is on track to become the next Major later this year. These prestigious marathons are more than just races — they're opportunities to raise critical funds for lung cancer research, education, and support programs that change lives.
Whether you're an experienced athlete or taking on your next big challenge, this is your chance to see the world while standing up for everyone affected by lung cancer. Grab your passport and help us go the distance!
PUBLIC POLICY
LUNGevity ensures that the lung cancer community’s interests are represented in policy by leveraging our research, collaborations, and patients’ voices to inform legislative and regulatory policy priorities.
We consistently submit letters to legislators and regulators, both as an individual organization and in coalitions of organizations, to support the advancement of innovation and access to clinical trials, therapies and screening.
Championing Innovation, Access, and Action
Check out our Public Policy Priorities webpage to learn more about the issues LUNGevity is taking on. Take action with us through the LUNGevity Action Network.
Policy News: Budget Reconciliation Package Passed
The budget reconciliation package passed by Congress last week includes the largest cuts to Medicaid in the program's history, while making it more difficult and costly for individuals to obtain coverage through the insurance Marketplace established by the Affordable Care Act. These cuts will reduce access to healthcare, including for people living with lung cancer, and will put additional pressure on rural hospitals that are already struggling to stay open.
LUNGevity strongly opposes these cuts and will continue advocating for policies that address the very real healthcare access issues that Americans of all backgrounds and political affiliations face on a daily basis.
Policy News: Supreme Court Protects Access to Lifesaving Preventive Care
LUNGevity applauds the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Kennedy v. Braidwood Management upholding the protection of access to lifesaving preventive care, including lung cancer screening, without patient cost sharing. With this decision, the Supreme Court has reinforced a vital public health safeguard: ensuring high-risk individuals maintain free, no-cost access to lifesaving lung cancer screening. Learn more about early detection and lung cancer screening.
RESEARCH CORNER
Research is the key to a future where we can easily diagnose, treat, and cure lung cancer.
LUNGevity is a vital part of the research community through grant funding, thought leadership, policy initiatives, and more.
Our strategic focus on translational research allows us to support initial discoveries that lead to lifesaving breakthroughs in early detection and treatment.
New: Research Newsletter
This month, we are launching our Research Newsletter to bring you exciting updates that span the continuum of research.
This month's edition will start with research conducted in the lab, share groundbreaking data presented at a major scientific conference, and wrap up with announcements of new FDA approvals for lung cancer treatment.
Below is a high-level look at these topics; for more detailed information on these and more, sign up for the Research Newsletter.
Overcoming Drug Resistance by Targeting Cells that Escape
When a person is treated for advanced-stage lung cancer, tumors will often shrink and their symptoms may subside. An effective treatment will kill many tumor cells, but there are usually some cells (called drug-tolerant persister cells, or DTPCs) left behind. These cancer cells that survive treatment will eventually begin to grow again.
As we understand more about these cells—and how to stop them — we get closer to eliminating lung cancer relapse and saving lives. Christine Lovly, MD, PhD, of Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and Jill Feldman of EGFR Resisters joined LUNGevity to discuss this promising area of research supported by a grant from EGFR Resisters and LUNGevity. Watch it here.
Highlights from the 2025 ASCO Meeting
This year’s American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting delivered a wave of transformative insights that are reshaping lung cancer care, particularly in treating relapsed small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and in refining our approach to treating early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Learn about these major lung cancer advances (and more) presented at this meeting.
New FDA Approvals
LUNGevity joins the rest of the lung cancer community in celebrating the recent approvals of treatments for lung cancer that build on foundational work from basic scientists and translational researchers. These new treatments will improve outcomes for many people living with this disease.
- On June 11, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the approval of taletrectinib to treat patients with locally advanced or metastatic
non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with ROS1 rearrangements. Get more information about this approval.
- The FDA announced on June 23 the accelerated approval of datopotamab deruxtecan to treat patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC with mutations in the EGFR gene. Learn more about this approval and this exciting new class of drugs, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).
- On July 2, 2025 the US FDA granted accelerated approval to sunvozertinib for locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations. This offers a new therapeutic option for patients whose disease has progressed on or after chemotherapy treatment. Learn more here.
LUNGevity is transforming what it means to be diagnosed and live with lung cancer.
Support our mission by making a tax-deductible donation today.
