Press Release
Feb 01, 2021
Chris Martin CMartin@DavidJamesGroup.com | 630-670-2745
DENVER- The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) has selected Toronto, Canada resident Anne Marie Cerato as a participant for the Supportive Training for Advocates on Research and Science (STARS) Program as a Patient Research Advocate (PRA).
The STARS program aims to help patient advocates evolve into patient research advocates—a distinction explained by a PRA’s ability to bring the patient voice to research-related efforts. PRAs work with clinicians and scientists to provide the patient perspective for lung cancer research and policy.
Cerato was diagnosed in April 2009 with stage 3A adenocarcinoma, at the age of 30. She underwent six months of treatment that included radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery.
In 2011, she experienced a recurrence of her disease, which led her to look into alternative treatments and clinical trials. In September of that year, she was notified that she had an ALK-EML4 fusion, a rare gene alterationin lung cancer, and began her first clinical trial for a novel tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI). After five successful years, she experienced a second recurrence and began her second clinical trial in 2016 for a third generation TKI.
After Cerato began her treatment, she gave up her career as an educator to focus on her health, spending time with her family, and pursuing her passion for travel. This also led her to advocate for the young-adult cancer community and for the lung cancer community in Canada. She has served on the board of directors for Lung Cancer Canada for seven years, and as acting Chair of Patient Programming, stepping down in 2020 to chair the Patient and Caregiver
Committee. She has also served as a LocaLife leader for the Young Adult Cancer Canada.
STARS Mentors and PRAs will receive complimentary registration to attend the IASLC 2020 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC), to be held virtually January 28-31 2021. The WCLC is the largest international conference specific to lung cancer. To prepare for WCLC, Mentors and PRAs will participate in communication learning labs through Research Advocacy Network, education sessions and meetings with key opinion leaders in the lung cancer community.
About the IASLC:
The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) is the only global organization dedicated solely to the study of lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies. Founded in 1974, the association's membership includes nearly 7,500 lung cancer specialists across all disciplines in over 100 countries, forming a global network working together to conquer lung and thoracic cancers worldwide. The association also publishes the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, the primary educational and informational publication for topics relevant to the prevention, detection, diagnosis, and treatment of all thoracic malignancies. Visit www.iaslc.org for more information.
About the WCLC:
The WCLC is the world’s largest meeting dedicated to lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies, attracting more than 7,000 researchers, physicians and specialists from more than 100 countries. The goal is to increase awareness, collaboration and understanding of lung cancer, and to help participants implement the latest developments across the globe. The conference will cover a wide range of disciplines and unveil several research studies and clinical trial results. For more information, visit wclc2020.iaslc.org.
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