NEW YORK, June 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) and Uniting Against Lung Cancer (UALC) have elected to merge to amplify their impact on advancing lung cancer research. The required regulatory documents for the merger were approved by the New York State Attorney General on May 20, 2015. The combined entity, which will carry on the important work of both organizations, retains the Lung Cancer Research Foundation name to best reflect its mission: to improve and save lives by funding groundbreaking research for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure of lung cancer.

“We believe we can achieve more together than we can alone,” said Pippa Gerard, Chairman of LCRF’s Board of Directors. “This merger allows us to combine our expertise, resources and network of committed individuals to increase our impact and help close the funding gap for lung cancer research.”

The merged organization has made significant new hires as part of its commitment to becoming the leading nonprofit focused solely on lung cancer research. Nancy Sanford joins as Executive Director with 25 years of fundraising experience, most recently as the Vice President and Chief Philanthropy Officer of the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation. Jan Baranski, PhD, formerly a management consultant to the pharmaceutical industry at Accenture, has been appointed the new Director of Scientific Programs. Delia Naughton, LMSW, joins as Vice President of Business Development. Ms. Naughton was previously Vice President, Business and Program Marketing for the American Lung Association.

“Both UALC and LCRF were born out of personal connections and the commitment of families affected by lung cancer, and it is in this spirit that our organizations have decided to join forces,” said Mary Ann Tighe, Vice Chairman of the LCRF Board of Directors and former President of the Board of UALC. “In addition to building on our track records of success, our union will help enhance our fundraising capabilities and reduce duplication of efforts and overhead, allowing us to make larger grants to an even greater number of researchers.”

To date, LCRF and UALC have collectively provided nearly 250 grants, totaling more than $17 million, to institutions around the world for critical lung cancer research. This support has enabled researchers with groundbreaking ideas to innovate, and has paved the way for follow on funding from sources such as the National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health and American Cancer Society, among others. Moving forward, LCRF will continue to fund pioneering, high-reward research across the spectrum of basic, clinical, and translational research that has the potential to extend survival and quality of life for people with lung cancer.

About Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is a malignant tumor that forms in the tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages. Treatment options vary depending on the type and stage of lung cancer, but can include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and/or targeted therapy. Lung cancer is the second leading cause of all deaths in the U.S. and the number one cause of cancer death worldwide.^[i] Despite this fact, it is the most underfunded type of cancer. For every death, lung cancer research receives approximately $1,500 from the National Institutes of Health, compared to $17,000 for every breast cancer death. ^[ii]

About the Lung Cancer Research Foundation

The Lung Cancer Research Foundation’s mission is to improve and save lives by funding groundbreaking research for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure of lung cancer. The organization was founded in 2005 by Laurie Carson, who tirelessly advocated for increased lung cancer research after the disease claimed the lives of both her brother and uncle. On May 20, 2015, LCRF merged with Uniting Against Lung Cancer (UALC), founded in 2001 by family and friends of Joan Scarangello McNeive, who died of lung cancer at the age of 47. Since 2003, LCRF and UALC have granted more than $17 million to US and international researchers. To learn more, please visit www.LungCancerResearchFoundation.org.

^[i] Centers for Disease Control. Detailed Tables for the National Vital Statistics Report “Deaths: Final Data for 2013.” http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_02.pdf; World Health Organization. Cancer Fact Sheet. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs297/en/

^[ii] U.S. National Institutes of Health. Estimates of Funding for Various Research, Condition and Disease Categories. http://report.nih.gov/categorical_spending.aspx; U.S. National Institutes of Health. National Cancer Institute. SEER Stat Fact Sheets: Lung and Bronchus Cancer. http://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/lungb.html; U.S. National Institutes of Health. National Cancer Institute. SEER Stat Fact Sheets: Breast Cancer. http://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/breast.html

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SOURCE Lung Cancer Research Foundation