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The 10% solution: Augusta woman beats lung cancer
by Outspoken on Wed Aug 06, 2008 3:58 am
The 10% solution: Augusta woman beats lung cancer
BY BETTY ADAMS
Staff Writer Kennebec Journal
AUGUSTA -- A decade ago, Debbie Violette, of Augusta, was diagnosed with lung cancer and told she had a 10 percent chance of surviving the next two years.
She researched the disease and treatments available -- and managed to beat the odds.
Today, she uses her vacation time from her job with the state Bureau of Insurance to attend conferences on cancer, advocate for increased awareness and funding for lung- cancer research and aid people diagnosed with lung cancer.
"You pretty much have to be a partner in your own health treatment," Violette said. "I had to dig and find information. And I thought, if I'm doing that, there must be other Maine citizens doing the same thing. So I started advocating for raising awareness and helping other people through the health care and insurance arena."
Violette, 54, recently returned from a LiveSTRONG Summit in Ohio sponsored by Lance Armstrong. There, she received a Unity Award, which was presented in the form of a gas card to help her get to the Legislature to lobby for health care awareness and for more cancer research funding, she said.
She's also been to a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncologists in Chicago and attended a National Lung Cancer Partnership summit.
"Lung cancer is the No. 1 cause of death from cancer in the United States, the least talked about and the least funded," she said. "Our five-year survival rate has not changed in over 40 years. I have made it my personal mission to change health policy and raise awareness of this disease."
Violette is state chairman of the Lung Cancer Alliance, a Washington, D.C.,-based group.
Laurie Fenton Ambrose, president and CEO of the Alliance, praised Violette's work.
"Deb is a passionate and energetic advocate for increased public funding for lung cancer research," Fenton Ambrose said. "Through her dedication and commitment to raising awareness, she has provided hope to a community so long ignored."
A fact sheet from the Alliance says lung cancer kills an average of 439 people a day in the United States.
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/5283104.html
BY BETTY ADAMS
Staff Writer Kennebec Journal
AUGUSTA -- A decade ago, Debbie Violette, of Augusta, was diagnosed with lung cancer and told she had a 10 percent chance of surviving the next two years.
She researched the disease and treatments available -- and managed to beat the odds.
Today, she uses her vacation time from her job with the state Bureau of Insurance to attend conferences on cancer, advocate for increased awareness and funding for lung- cancer research and aid people diagnosed with lung cancer.
"You pretty much have to be a partner in your own health treatment," Violette said. "I had to dig and find information. And I thought, if I'm doing that, there must be other Maine citizens doing the same thing. So I started advocating for raising awareness and helping other people through the health care and insurance arena."
Violette, 54, recently returned from a LiveSTRONG Summit in Ohio sponsored by Lance Armstrong. There, she received a Unity Award, which was presented in the form of a gas card to help her get to the Legislature to lobby for health care awareness and for more cancer research funding, she said.
She's also been to a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncologists in Chicago and attended a National Lung Cancer Partnership summit.
"Lung cancer is the No. 1 cause of death from cancer in the United States, the least talked about and the least funded," she said. "Our five-year survival rate has not changed in over 40 years. I have made it my personal mission to change health policy and raise awareness of this disease."
Violette is state chairman of the Lung Cancer Alliance, a Washington, D.C.,-based group.
Laurie Fenton Ambrose, president and CEO of the Alliance, praised Violette's work.
"Deb is a passionate and energetic advocate for increased public funding for lung cancer research," Fenton Ambrose said. "Through her dedication and commitment to raising awareness, she has provided hope to a community so long ignored."
A fact sheet from the Alliance says lung cancer kills an average of 439 people a day in the United States.
http://kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/5283104.html
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Plato (427-347 BC)
Plato (427-347 BC)
