Top News
New Lung Association Report Finds Prescribed Burns Can Lessen Health Harm from Worsening Wildfires: Our new report weighs benefits and risks of prescribed fire to reduce health harms of catastrophic wildfires. Fueled by climate change, wildfires are becoming more frequent and intense – increasingly exposing more Americans to the potentially deadly effects of breathing wildfire smoke. We have released a new report that finds that wildfire activity is predicted to increase in the decades ahead, historical fire suppression policies are insufficient for longer-term fire management, and prescribed burning can help reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires and the impact on air quality and lung health. Read the full report. For resources on how individuals can protect themselves from wildfire smoke, visit lung.org/wildfires.
First-Ever Millennial Lung Health Study Begins in Chicago: Lung disease is a leading cause of death in the country and more so due to the increase in COVID-19 infections and related deaths. The American Lung Association Lung Health Cohort has just begun and is the first-ever large-scale lung health study that will track 4,000 young adults (aged 25-35) at the age of peak lung health. The Lung Association's Airways Clinical Research Centers (ACRC) Network will conduct the research working closely with researchers at Northwestern Medicine, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, University of Michigan, University of Alabama-Birmingham, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and all of the ACRC centers. Those interested can sign up here.
Protect Yourself and Your Loved Ones from COVID-19: Learn what to do to help keep yourself and your loved ones safe. Please GIVE to the COVID-19 Action Fund so we can help end COVID-19 and defend against future respiratory viruses. Find the latest information at Lung.org/covid19 and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram social channels and share these timely messages with your network.
Lung Association Honors Pride Month: Join us this month as we celebrate our LGBTQ+ staff, medical professionals and volunteers and shine a light on the health inequities experienced by those in the LGBTQ+ community. As the trusted champion of lung health, the Lung Association strives for a world free from lung disease and that includes our year-round commitment to reducing health disparities faced by the LGBTQ+ community.
Listen to Lungcast™: Our latest episode highlights our conversation with Dr. Juan Carlos Cardet at University of South Florida and Dr. Elliot Israel at Brigham and Women’s Hospital about the most common respiratory disease in the U.S.- asthma! It provides a deep dive into the guideline-supported SMART strategy, role of COVID-19 in current asthma risks, and research into the medical and financial impacts of asthma on the U.S. patient population. More about Drs. Cardet and Israel’s latest research can be found on our Research News webpage. Tune into the interview, plus past episodes, at: Lung.org/lungcast.
SUPPORT THE LUNG ASSOCIATION
Your support makes our mission possible! Show your support for lung health and help drive our lifesaving mission forward. Find ways to get involved.
LUNG CANCER
‘A Hope Story’ Delivers a Powerful Message: In honor of National Cancer Survivors Day, we’ve released a new PSA - A Hope Story. This powerful public service announcement is part of our Saved by the Scan campaign to raise awareness of lifesaving lung cancer screening. A collaboration between the Ad Council and the Lung Association in partnership with Hill Holliday, the PSA is designed to empower high-risk individuals to get screened for early detection of lung cancer, which remains the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S.
LUNG FORCE Hero: Mariann joined her local LUNG FORCE Walk because she was diagnosed in 2015 with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. “I have come a long way since that day. Through chemo, radiation and chemo maintenance, we kept it contained. We now have moved on to immunotherapy drugs. These drugs were not available to me when I was first diagnosed in 2015,” said Mariann. “Thanks to all the donations to LUNG FORCE and the American Lung Association new options have been made possible.”
PATIENT SUPPORT
Help with Long-COVID: Millions of Americans have recovered from COVID-19. But the term recovery is used loosely and does not account for the lingering, returning or new symptoms many individuals are experiencing post-infection. While it has many names: post-COVID conditions, long COVID, chronic COVID or COVID-19 long-haulers, all indicate any combination of symptoms that occur four or more weeks after initial infection. Learn more on our new Long-COVID webpage and find support and networking with others in our Living with Long COVID online support group on the Inspire platform. You can also talk to a lung health professional and learn the symptoms to look out for by calling our Lung HelpLine at 1-800-LUNGUSA. And see our new blog “Tips for Managing Long-COVID Symptoms.”
TOBACCO
Help Us End Sale of Menthol Cigarettes and Flavored Cigars: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced two proposed rules to end the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. This action will save lives, and end unjust disparities in tobacco use, primarily caused by the tobacco companies targeting vulnerable communities with menthol cigarettes. We are urging the Biden administration to finalize rules by end of 2022. Voice your support by sending a comment to FDA. Help by sharing your story with us! We invite you to share your own personal experiences with menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars by emailing them to TakeAction@Lung.org. In the subject line please put “My Menthol Story.” Are you a health professional? We invite you to go to our action alert and a health professional’s sign-on letter to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf in support of the proposed rules.
EACH BREATH BLOG
The movie “Top Gun: Maverick” is taking the world by storm. But did you know that getting enough air is a constant problem for fighter pilots? That’s why oxygen masks may be the key to making sure Maverick makes it to the next sequel. Learn more in our latest blog.
Everything we do is THANKS TO YOU!!
Without your support, our work would never get off the ground! We want to thank you for your steadfast support that makes it possible to champion healthy lungs for all!
Blog last updated: August 23, 2023
