Inaugural 'Lungs on the Run' Race to Benefit Cancer Consortium

CINCINNATI—Local lung cancer survivors hope to benefit lung cancer awareness and research with the first ever "Lungs on the Run” 5K run/walk Saturday May 22, at the West Chester Medical Center campus.

The American Cancer Society lists lung cancer as the leading cause of cancer death for both men and women. The disease kills more people annually than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined and was estimated to cause almost 160,000 deaths in 2009.

"Lungs on the Run” is the creation of Cincinnati residents KC Faessler, a six-year lung cancer survivor, her son Phil Faessler and his girlfriend Shannon Dunn. KC Faessler lost both her mother and grandfather to lung cancer; Dunn lost her father and cousin to the disease. After participating in other lung cancer walks, the trio decided to create a similar fundraiser in Cincinnati.

"We hope to make this an annual event with the goal of raising awareness, promoting education and research and supporting those who work diligently to find treatments and a cure for this devastating disease,” says Faessler.

All proceeds from the race will benefit the Cincinnati Cancer Consortium, a partnership among the UC College of Medicine, UC Health University Hospital and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

The Cincinnati Cancer Consortium includes 142 College of Medicine faculty members at UC and Cincinnati Children’s, who currently hold about $32 million in cancer-related grants. The consortium’s lung cancer center of excellence is home to clinical trials and research studying treatments for the disease and identifying certain genetic susceptibilities to it.

The 5K run/walk will start at 8:30 a.m. May 22, at the West Chester Medical Center campus at the corner at Tylersville and Cox Roads. The 1 mile walk will begin at 9:30 a.m.

To register or for information about the race, visit lungsontherun.com. Along with the Cincinnati Cancer Consortium, UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians is also a sponsor of the event.