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Health & Fitness

Walk for a good cause at 2nd annual Breathe Deep Columbia event on April 26

The battle against lung cancer continues on Saturday, April 26 with Breathe Deep Columbia, which returns for its second year to help fight a disease that has a five-year survival rate of just 16 percent — killing nearly twice as many women as breast cancer and nearly three times as many men as prostate cancer.

Despite those deadly figures, lung cancer receives less than 6 percent of federal cancer research funding. You can help out at Breathe Deep Columbia, a fundraising event in which a walk of just 5 kilometers, or 3.1 miles, will go a long way toward research for the early detection and treatment of lung cancer.

Those attending will participate in a 5K walk on Columbia’s pathways from the Lakefront Plaza to and around Wilde Lake, and then back. Strollers are welcome, as are pets (but be sure to clean up after your pet). Only portions of the walk are wheelchair accessible. There is an alternative 1K route for those challenged by the longer walk. The event is being held rain or shine.

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Registration is $25 for adults; $15 for lung cancer survivors, seniors and students; and $10 for youths 13 and under. To register, or to make a donation, please visit Lungevity.org/columbia. On April 26, there will be on-site registration and check-in beginning at 8:30 a.m. At 9:30 a.m. will be a brief program that will include a warm-up led by Columbia Association’s (CA) personal trainers, as well as a ceremony to remember people who have died from lung cancer.

Breathe Deep Columbia is the inspiration of Columbia resident Michael Osborne, who was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer in April 2008. Osborne credits his current well-being to oncologist Dr. Clement B. Knight, who passed away in August 2012. The walk is held in memory of Dr. Knight.

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The event is made possible by the LUNGevity Foundation and is sponsored by Columbia Association;Howard County Center for Lung and Sleep MedicineGenentechMedifast Weight Control Centers;American Radiology ServicesZemaira; the law firm of Whiteford, Taylor and Preston; and The Horizon Foundation. In-kind donations have been provided by AMC TheatresWegmans and Secolari.

Research made possible by funding from LUNGevity is finding ways to expedite the development of an effective early detection strategy to discover all lung cancers while they are still localized and treatable, and to identify therapeutic agents that provide customized genetic intervention for lung cancer in order to extend patients’ lives and improve their quality of life post-diagnosis.

About Columbia Association

Columbia Association (CA) is a nonprofit service corporation that manages Columbia, MD, a planned community that is home to approximately 100,000 people and several thousand businesses. Additional information about CA is available at ColumbiaAssociation.org.

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