On May 16th, 2007, I had the honor of being one of the 200 delegates from around the country chosen to represent the Lance Armstrong Foundation in Washington, D.C. for LIVESTRONG Day 2007. Together with 11 other Iowans, I had one of the most amazing experiences of my life so far! While it is unlike me to open up about the subject of cancer, I decided to share my LIVESTRONG experience with others to help build the LIVESTRONG army in Iowa.

Most of you know that I have had cancer, but I didn’t feel moved to become involved for myself. While my immediate family has been plagued by multiple cancer diagnoses, I am most moved by the cancer experience of my brother Tracy, and it is in his honor that I devote my time to this important cause. Tracy has had cancer twice. First he had a serious case of Hodgkin’s lymphoma in his twenties, and now in his forties he has been diagnosed with widely metastatic carcinoid tumor. It is unlikely that he will be cured, although there is always reason for hope. Instead he is likely to be one of the many who must find a way to live with cancer with an uncertain future. Two big issues are raised when considering the situation of people like my brother. One, if we hadn’t shamefully cut the federal budget for cancer research at this critical time in our understanding of the disease, perhaps there would be medication available to cure him or at least better alleviate his suffering. Second, many patients are facing survivorship issues and finding a lack of resources available to them. The bottom line is that because of my brother’s diagnosis I started to learn more about the political and financial situation surrounding the many aspects of cancer related issues and I have been humbled and moved by what I have learned. Consider this:

* 1 in 3 women and 1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime
* 3 out of 4 families will help care for a family member with cancer
* More than 10 million people in the U.S. are currently living with cancer
* 560,000 people in this country will die of cancer this year
* 1/3 of these deaths could be avoided by applying what we already know about preventing and treating cancer (if only we spent the money to screen and treat those who fall through the cracks). It is just plain wrong that people are dying of cancer because they didn’t have the money to be screened.

So, chances are, someone you love has already been affected! Chances are better that someone you love will be affected in the years to come.

What can you do? One of three things. Just one!
1) Live
2) Act
3) Give

LIVE: Have you had cancer? Do you know someone with cancer? Just be there for them. Offer your support, love, encouragement, quiet presence or share your story. Attitude is everything! How do you LIVESTRONG??? Check out the LAF website for amazing survivorship materials available for free to anyone. Make sure everyone you know who has cancer has access to these resources!

ACT: Be an advocate! You don’t have to go to Washington DC to make a difference! Please, please join the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s LIVESTRONG army by going to the LAF website and providing your contact information. Please, if you do nothing else, just join. Watch the videos which are incredibly moving. You will be notified about important votes in Congress which will impact this disease and you can make a difference just by hitting the “send” button. Your vote is the most powerful tool you have to offer to make a difference and while it is free, it is priceless. Ask your elected officials and presidential candidates where they stand on the cancer issue! We need to fund a cure for this nation’s biggest killer!

GIVE: If you can or feel moved to go that extra step, go ahead and give a financial donation to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. While I don’t like to ask for money, I would be honored to have your participation in my personal fundraiser for the LAF. I am registered to run the Chicago Marathon on October 7, 2007 on behalf of the LAF and I have committed to raising $3500. This is a big step for me having never run a marathon before! If you would like to make a tax deductible donation please visit my personal fundraising website and make an online donation (Just click on the link at the right of the screen entitled “Chicago Marathon for LAF”). Thank you so much in advance!

The LAF has a new theme called “UNITE”. They have attempted to bring all cancer organizations together in the same fight, merging the power of so many other excellent organizations such as the American Cancer Society. I applaud their approach.

I hope to share my ongoing story of hope with the visitors to this site. I’ll be updating you on my marathon training and other important happenings in the life of the Lance Armstrong Foundation. There are two important dates to tell you about right now: 1) July 25th is Iowa LIVESTRONG Day, celebrating Lance Armstrong’s participation in RAGBRAI. Please wear yellow that day! 2) August 27 and 28, 2007 the LAF is hosting the first ever Presidential Cancer Forum in Cedar Rapids at the US Cellular center. You can register to attend at livestrong.org.

Thank you for visiting!

LIVESTRONG,
Kim

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