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The National Shine a Light on Lung Cancer Vigil, November 4, 2010

The idea and inspiration for the Shine A Light movement originated in Boston four years ago under the leadership and guidance of Diane Legg, a lung cancer survivor and co-chair of Lung Cancer Alliance's (LCA) Massachusetts Chapter. What began as a handful of dedicated volunteers on the steps of the capitol quickly grew to an annual event with hundreds of participants lighting up the Prudential Building in downtown Boston. Subsequently, LCA volunteers in Maine, New York and elsewhere began hosting vigils in November during Lung Cancer Awareness month as means of galvanizing the lung cancer movement.

Last year, another dedicated volunteer in Massachusetts, David Watson, reached out to LCA wanting to expand the program nationally to offer the millions of people touched by lung cancer a simple yet inspirational and effective way of raising awareness and getting involved in the lung cancer movement. Having played a key role in the LCA Massachusetts annual Shine A Light on Lung Cancer Vigil, he created the first vigil website, organizer workplan and toolkit. Before we knew it, 27 vigil coordinators were established in 17 states with an estimated 2,000 people in attendance. Media stories presenting the real facts about the disease were secured in numerous community papers and magazines, as well as interviews on local broadcast and radio stations. Vigil organizers included survivors, family members and friends, as well as organizations, companies, schools/universities, and medical facilities.

The goal this year is to host 100 vigils representing all 50 states reaching an estimated audience of 1,000,000. The specific objectives include:

• Empowering patients, survivors and those at risk with information, hope, and support to improve outcomes and quality of life.
• Educating and mobilizing Americans to gain a better understanding, and bring attention and support for the lung cancer movement.
• Engaging key decision makers, policy leaders, media, and the medical community, securing multiple millions in public health dollars for lung cancer research.
• Honoring and memorializing loved ones.

With this level of interest and experiences learned from last year, the 2010 National Shine A Light on Lung Cancer Vigil is poised to finally bring lung cancer out of the shadows and ignite a national dialogue about the disease.

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