In the game of football, players face tough opponents, and former NFL linebacker Chris Draft knows what it means to play hard. That’s why his new game plan is to beat lung cancer. “What we’ve found consistently is there is hope for lung cancer,” Draft said. READ MORE
Fox Carolina — Discussing the State of Lung Cancer Treatment in Greenville, SC from TEAM DRAFT on Vimeo.
At his wedding, a former NFL player announced his new foundation to fight cancer. A month later, his wife lost her battle with cancer.
This Monday, doctors and scientists move in to the new Cancer Research Center on Tulane Avenue, and that former football player says this is as big as the Super Bowl…Read More
PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) -
A former NFL linebacker came to Portland to see how researchers at Oregon Health & Science University are bringing new hope to cancer patients.
Chris Draft lost his wife to lung cancer in 2011. Before she died, the couple launched Team Draft to raise money and awareness to fight the disease.
Keasha Draft was not a smoker. Experts say nearly 60 percent of newly diagnosed lung cancer patients are former smokers or have never smoked.
Chris Draft said he was inspired by what he saw at OHSU’s Knight Cancer Institute Thursday.
He talked to scientists who are working to test DNA so they can determine which cancer drugs work best for each patient.
“It really brings a lot of hope to patients right now and to future patients,” he said.
Chris Draft played in the NFL from 1998 to 2009 on six different teams, including the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers.
Copyright 2013 KPTV-KPDX Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved.
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Eugene Polk, Jr. (Rickey) , the oldest child of eight of Chris’s grandmother , Lottie Harden Polk, was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer in August 2001 and died 9 months later, missing the birth of his first grandchild by four months.
Rickey was a Vietnam War veteran who served as a registered nuclear medicine technician in Germany and stateside at Walter Reed Army Hospital. Upon his discharge from the Army, he continued his training, eventually serving as the Director of Nuclear Medicine at Menorah Medical Center in Overland Park, Kansas.
For Rickey By- Pat (Polk) Sims
As at birth
The same at death
You struggle for life giving breath.
I watch your chest rise—but it doesn’t fall
For what seems like minutes, and I want to call
A doctor a nurse anyone who can make you breathe
And then… the gentle sound of exhaled air…you’re still here,
Though no one knows for how long.
This journey started nine months ago and at that time
We weren’t aware that it was the dawn of a life change,
The birth of an unwelcome addition to the family
That would trigger a fight filled with minor successes
Sandwiched between major setbacks, and intrusive thoughts of
“This might be our last Christmas…
You’ll never see your grandchildren…
How will Mama survive your death?”
You tried to shelter us from the truth,
Never knowing that we knew what you were up against and
Wanted to love you and believe with you
That you would beat this adversary that didn’t fight fair,
That you would be the one to survive and that
Your treatment would set a precedent that could save lives.
We became well versed in platins and T-cell counts and
Potential chemical trials and reflexology.
When you were no longer able to walk
We learned how to safely transfer you to and from your bed–
And I remember apologizing when for the first time I, the little sister,
Helped you, the big brother use the restroom
And how we rejoiced when the session ended with a big success—
You hated to admit it but the prune juice worked and
We laughed so hard we cried as we ceremoniously flushed away the “eel”!
And now it’s come to this, watching your chest rise and fall
And not wanting to admit that a ventilator
Is doing the work that you can no longer do
And that now your kidneys are shutting down
And that you are still here only by the grace of God and the power of your will.
So, I kiss you and sing to you and tell you it’s okay to stop fighting and to leave us…
You struggle for life giving breath
As at birth
And so at death.
Augusta, GA — Former Falcons and Panthers linebacker Chris Draft had some struggles on the field as a journeyman in the NFL. He played for 7 teams in 12 seasons including the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers. But it was nothing compared to what he faced shortly after retiring.
This December, his wife Keisha died of lung cancer, just one month after the two were married.
Now Draft spends his time traveling around the country raising awareness about lung cancer and also hopefully lifting the spirits of those battling the deadly disease.
On Friday, Draft paid a visit to the GHS Cancer Center in Augusta. He says he hopes the patients can try to find some joy in their lives despite what they’re going through.
Team Draft is leading a National Campaign to Change the Face of Lung Cancer, and has visited over 45 Centers across the United States, and Canada. Our blog, The Draft Report is our way of sharing the stories of the amazing doctors and researchers who are working diligently to save lives, and improve the chances of people affected by cancer. Please help us continue the FIGHT! Respond! IT TAKES A TEAM TO TACKLE LUNG CANCER!
Team Draft and Team LIVESTRONG® Challenge Series Heads to Philadelphia to Champion Cancer Survivors. Lance Armstrong to Participate in Run and Ride at Seventh Annual Philly Challenge and Chris Draft to Serve as Keynote Speaker and Participate in Run.
The 2012 Team LIVESTRONG Challenge Series will return to Philadelphia Aug. 18-19 for the seventh time. The two-day event includes a 5K or 10K walk/run on Saturday and a multi-distance bike ride on Sunday, with distances ranging from 20-100 miles, providing options for a wide-range of fitness levels. Lance Armstrong, cancer survivor, cycling champion and founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation, will attend the weekend’s events and participate in both the run and ride. Chris Draft, former NFL linebacker and founder of the Chris Draft Family Foundation (CDFF), will participate in the run and serve as the keynote speaker at the fundraising dinner on Saturday.
“I am looking forward to joining our enthusiastic and dedicated supporters for the seventh annual Team LIVESTRONG Challenge in Philly,” said Armstrong. “This weekend is a great opportunity for us to unite in the fight against cancer and actively support the 28 million people affected by cancer worldwide.”
Team Draft, an initiative of the CDFF launched by Draft and his late wife Keasha during Keasha’s year-long battle with Stage IV Lung Cancer, is leading a national campaign to change the face of lung cancer by shattering the misconception that lung cancer is a “smoker’s disease.”
“Cancer came into my house, and it took my wife. Too many families are affected by this horrible disease. It’s time to respond,” said Draft. “That’s why Keasha and I launched Team Draft. She wanted to be an inspiration to those battling the disease and we wanted to raise awareness so that other families wouldn’t have to go through what we went through. Team Draft is committed to changing the face of lung cancer, but it takes a team to tackle cancer, and we are proud to work with the Lance Armstrong Foundation for this year’s Team LIVESTRONG Challenge.”
The Team LIVESTRONG Challenge is the Foundation’s popular three-part series in Team LIVESTRONG’s roster of more than two-dozen athletic events designed to raise funds for the fight against cancer. The Challenge inspires and empowers individuals, teams, families, friends and co-workers to unite in the fight against the world’s leading cause of death. One hundred percent of participant and donor gifts to the LIVESTRONG Challenge series go directly to support cancer programs and initiatives. Since 1997, the Challenge events have raised more than $70 million.
In the 2011 Philly Challenge, more than 5,000 participants raised more than $2.6 million for the fight against cancer. To date, the LIVESTRONG Challenge Philly has raised more than $16 million since 2006. Philadelphia will be the second stop in this year’s series, which kicked off in Davis, Calif. in June and ends in Austin, Texas on Oct. 21. The Philly Challenge takes place at Montgomery County Community College. Those interested in registering can visit www.TeamLIVESTRONG.org.
About the Lance Armstrong Foundation
The Lance Armstrong Foundation serves people affected by cancer and empowers them to take action against the world’s leading cause of death. With its iconic yellow LIVESTRONG wristband, the Foundation became a symbol of hope and inspiration to people affected by cancer throughout the world. Created in 1997 by cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong, the Foundation provides free patient navigation services to survivors with financial, emotional and practical challenges that accompany the disease. Known for its powerful brand – LIVESTRONG – the Foundation is also a leader in the global movement on behalf of 28 million people living with cancer today. Since its inception in 1997, the Foundation has raised nearly $500 million for the fight against cancer. For more information, visit LIVESTRONG.org.
Team Draft is leading a National Campaign to Change the Face of Lung Cancer, and has visited over 45 Centers across the United States, and Canada. Our blog, The Draft Report is our way of sharing the stories of the amazing doctors and researchers who are working diligently to save lives, and improve the chances of people affected by cancer. Please help us continue the FIGHT! Respond! IT TAKES A TEAM TO TACKLE LUNG CANCER!
Linebacker Chris Draft tackled tough for several NFL teams—and played to win. But, when the Redskins released him in 2010, he faced an opponent he couldn’t beat.
His fiancée, Keasha, who had never smoked, had stage four lung cancer.
Last November, chronicled in a poignant video that went viral, the two got married. With a beautiful white dress and an oxygen tank, Keasha walked the final few steps, and she and Chris exchanged vows.
Exactly one month later, Keasha died. She was 38.
Now Draft is a man on a mission, meeting with lung cancer groups and lobbying Congress to pass the “Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act,” which calls for the government to come up with a plan to cut lung cancer deaths in half by 2020.
This year alone, 160,000 Americans will die of lung cancer—by far the biggest cancer killer of all.
Even though smoking is the number one cause, the lung cancer alliance says the 60 percent of new lung cancer cases are people who quit—many decades ago—and 20 percent never smoked.
Ex-NFL linebacker Chris Draft knows about fighting for air, not due to smoking or a high altitude climb but because he lives with asthma that often landed him in the hospital. As much as he appreciated each breath during his football years, the fight behind it grew crystal clear when Keasha, his love at the time was diagnosed with stage IV cancer. She became the surprising face of lung cancer at age 37.
Keasha, once a Charlotte Hornets Honeybee dancer and a member of the Clemson University Rally Cat dance squad, struggled for breath and fought to dance, smile, and live even as her body weakened.
According to the CDC, more people die from lung cancer than any other type of cancer. Roughly 200,000 people are diagnosed with lung cancer yearly (tens of thousands of them never smoked) and about 150,000 die from the disease each year. Its virulence tends to cause death within months rather than years. That is why Keasha and Draft could no longer allow their busy schedules and other priorities to interfere with their relationship.
They met in 2006 when Draft played for the Carolina Panthers. He moved on to the Rams team in 2007 and the Bills a couple of years later, and then the Bears, which made time with Keasha periodic. Retirement from the Washington Redskins in 2010 finally brought them together full time. Soon Keasha would learn about her advanced lung cancer. Eight months after the diagnosis, Draft asked for her hand in marriage. He wanted to spend every remaining breath with her as husband and wife, be it a day or a second.
On November 27, 2011, they sat side by side to solidify their union and stood side by side to solidify their fight against lung cancer with the launch of Team Draft, dedicated to raising lung cancer awareness and increasing badly needed research funding by shattering misconceptions about lung cancer as strictly a “smoker’s disease,” self-inflicted by poor life choices. Keasha, who never smoked, died of lung cancer in December 2011 after just five weeks of marriage.
In February, Team Draft, under the Chris Draft Family Foundation, took its campaign national in honor of Keasha’s courage during life. The organization issued a challenge to all current and former NFL players and fans to support the campaign by using social media to spread lung cancer awareness.
The website imparts trends in the prevention of lung cancer, the disease’s prevalence and mortality, and emerging treatments. It is a place to share personal stories and upcoming events by the Draft foundation and numerous partner organizations.
“Our national campaign to change the face of lung cancer,” said Draft, “gives us a frontline view of the state of lung cancer research and treatment in America. This is an exciting period in the history of lung cancer treatment. The use of state-of-the-art lung cancer screening techniques is reducing mortality rates by 20% in some groups, while cutting-edge, team-based multidisciplinary treatment procedures are improving the quality of life for lung cancer patients across the country.
“And,” added Draft, “thanks to advances in molecular tumor mutation testing, researchers and treating physicians are developing effective personal lung cancer treatments designed to extend and ultimately save lives.”
Early detection, as in the case of most cancers is critical. Symptoms may differ by individual or not appear at all. The more evident symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing that does not go away, coughing up blood, wheezing, chest pain, and repeated respiratory infections, such as bronchitis or pneumonia.
Better yet is lowering the risk of developing lung cancer by, as most Americans know, not smoking and by avoiding secondhand smoke. Less well known are the benefits of testing one’s home for radon gas and ionizing radiation, then correcting any problems. The CDC also recommends avoiding asbestos and any unnecessary medical radiation to the chest. Experts say treating chronic lung diseases and infections, likewise, can help, as does recognizing the risk of lung cancer increases with age and informing doctors of relevant family medical history.
“The key to making even greater strides (and alternatively saving lives) is funding,” concludes Draft, “but funding for lung cancer research is impacted by the “smoker’s disease” stigma. That’s why Team Draft is campaigning to change the face of lung cancer.”
Lung cancer can develop in anyone. Draft has taken this message nationwide to primary schools, universities, TV interviews, and to NBA and NCAA dance teams. During his stop in Philadelphia, he visited patients at Children’s Hospital and met members of the National Lung Cancer Partnership Pennsylvania chapter. He talked with students at the Philadelphia High School of Creative and Performing Arts about the importance of music and the use of music therapy to treat patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Similar stops were just made in Chicago and Northern California. Draft is now on route to the NFL’s Rookie Symposium in Canton, Ohio where he will speak to the latest rookie class about being leaders on the field and in the community. Along the way, this week’s schedule includes visits to Georgetown University’s Lombardi Cancer Center in Washington, DC and the Roswell Park Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York. Such top cancer research treatment centers can look to Team Draft for a platform to reach more Americans, in addition to funding that extends their work.
Chris Draft wants the public to know that any success he has is not achieved alone. Respond and Donate Today
Courtesy of Gloria Blakely of the Philadelphia Charity Examiner
The Former NFL Duo is Rallying a Star-Studded List of Hollywood and Athletic Celebrities to Join Them in Their Personal Journey to Tackle Lung Cancer
Hank: I’m here to support Bonnie’s Foundation because Lung Cancer is personal to me. It has swooped in and attacked my dad, and I understand how brutally destructive this cancer is and how many people are waging war to battle it.
Chris: I am honored to be here and passionate about helping an organization like the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation that is leading the way, and pushing for immediate answers – not future hypotheses, for people like my wife, who never smoked and was in great physical shape, but was diagnosed with Lung Cancer and died less than a year later. Bonnie is demanding answers NOW!
Hank: Every breath you take-the fuel of your body starts with your lungs. So take care of your lungs because you’ll need them-more than you’ll ever imagine. Trust me.
Bonnie: I get the breathing thing…I know it first hand and I know what it feels like when you can’t. It is our FUEL. Without it, life is terribly compromised…just having the support of Chris and Hank takes my breath away-in the good way!
SAN FRANCISCO, June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — While the U.S. Open was in full swing just 15 minutes away at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, 144 heroes including NFL stars Chris Draft and Hank Baskett were championing the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation’s Seventh Annual “Lung Cancer: Drive it off the Earth” Golf Tournament at Alistair MacKenzie-designed Green Hills Country Club. This year’s tournament raised more than $145,000 for this least-funded, yet most deadly cancer, which will go toward Lung Cancer research.
For both players, Lung Cancer is personal. Baskett, signed by the Colts and went on to play five years in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, and the Philadelphia Eagles is helping his father battle the disease. Draft, played 12 years in the NFL for the Chicago Bears, San Francisco 49ers, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, St. Louis Rams, and the Buffalo Bills recently lost his wife to the disease. Together, they are tackling Lung Cancer by raising awareness.
“We’re proud that Hank Baskett and Chris Draft are making a bold statement against Lung Cancer,” says Bonnie J. Addario, founder and a Lung Cancer survivor. “We’re so honored to have Hank and Chris-and their football and Hollywood friends-on our team helping to raise much-needed funding and awareness for Lung Cancer and the message that ANYONE CAN GET LUNG CANCER.”
The reception cocktail party, silent and live auctions and raffle proved that everyone was a winner. Addario, one of the rare Lung Cancer survivors and founder of the Foundation, welcomed Draft and Baskett into the Foundation’s family at dinner.
“I’m so proud to have Hank and Chris in our family,” said Bonnie. “Hank, I loved meeting your Dad at the tournament you held for us in May at the Trump National Golf Club. The only way I can describe him is he’s a GREAT BIG HUG and your mom is a pistol. The leadership and courage you and Chris are bringing to the team has grown way beyond the football field. Thank you for stepping up and helping us turn Lung Cancer into a manageable, survivable disease.”
There wasn’t a dry eye in the house after an airing of “Chris Draft, Love and Loss,” (http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=7542826)-ESPN’s touching profile of Chris and his late wife Keasha, and their commitment to dance, smile, and live as they fought Lung Cancer together. As a former Charlotte Hornets Honeybee dancer and member of Clemson University’s Rally Cat dance squad, Keasha was an energetic vibrant young woman who had never smoked when she was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer in December 2010. At the time, her only “symptom” was a slight shortness of breath a few days earlier. Despite the diagnosis and knowing the long odds they faced, Keasha and Chris decided to fight back. On November 27, 2011, standing side-by-side, they launched Team Draft together at their wedding. One month later, Keasha lost her courageous fight and died at the age of 38.
“The only way to tackle the issue of Lung Cancer is to do it as a solid team bringing together everyone from the patients and caregivers to the researchers and the doctors who are demanding that the results so far are not good at all,” said Draft. “There’s no one group that has a monopoly on this and that is why I was drawn to Bonnie and the foundation because they are working as a team with (ALCMI) Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute and their Lung Cancer Living Room® series. (http://www.lungcancerfoundation.org/living-with-lung-cancer/lung-cancer-living-room/) What separates them is that Bonnie knows there is a sense of urgency. Keasha had one year from her diagnosis, so I don’t listen when someone says ‘we’re working on it.” That’s not good enough.”
First place winners of the sold-out tournament were Michael Vasquez, Greg Gabbani, Josh Lutz and many-time winner Eddie Hernandez with an astounding 54. Second place winners were Rich Deponte, Stan Colombo, Dan Poncabra and long-time faithful major donor Mo Townsley with a score of 55.
The tournament’s presenting sponsor’s team from the Burns Family Foundation and Mobius Fit was led by Rob Dean and the foursome including Dave Engel, Ross Headley and Jeff Lokey came in third with a score of 56 (26 back 9).
“I must do all I can to raise awareness about lung cancer research and treatment – make it something we talk about around the dinner table – because I don’t want any other families to go through what we’ve been through.”
Those heartfelt words came from Chris Draft – former NFL linebacker and current lung cancer awareness advocate – after touring UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center in May. Draft lost his long-time love, wife Keasha (38), in December 2011, to stage 4 lung cancer. Keasha was a vibrant, young non-smoker who led a healthy, active lifestyle.
“She was so beautiful and strong,” recalled Draft as he posed for pictures – with Keasha displayed on his iPAD – at various locations throughout Moores Cancer Center. “We have to change the perception that lung cancer is a smoker’s disease and raise awareness as to how prevalent it is.”
UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center is one of more than 30 cancer centers Draft has toured, meeting with lung cancer specialists, including Scott Lippman, MD, Director of Moores Cancer Center.
“Translating lab discoveries of genetic tumor drivers to the clinic is changing cancer medicine,” explained Lippman. “Lung cancer is a great candidate for personalized medicine based on this translation. Early clinical trials based on this lab research can tell you very quickly if the lab data apply to selected tumors in human patients, sometimes within the first few patients. If you’re hitting the right molecular pathway in the right patient, the cancer will be disabled and the patient will respond quickly.”
Draft and Lippman speak a similar language, the language of the competitor: know your enemy, exploit its weakness. In this case, the common enemy is lung cancer. Lippman, who took the reins at Moores Cancer Center in early May, led the Lung Cancer Program of the MD Anderson Cancer Center Support Grant and is editor-in-chief of the AACR journal Cancer Prevention Research. Draft recently founded the Chris Draft Family Foundation, dedicated to eradicating lung cancer. The two plan to meet again this weekend at the ASCO (American Society for Clinical Oncology) conference, to trade ideas and catch up with other industry insiders.
“Having access to a cancer center, such as Moores, in your own neighborhood is so important too,” said Draft. “The cost and difficulty of traveling, the anxiety involved, can be overwhelming. San Diegans are fortunate because Moores Cancer Center is here, right here. You’ve got what you need medically and you’re still surrounded by family, friends and the familiar.”
Lippman also believes that keeping open the channels of communication between comprehensive cancer centers (CCCs; there are 41, nation-wide as of Spring 2012), will help immensely. “Federal funding is tight everywhere. Translating and sharing on a national level, or linking the CCCs, will allow us to go farther, faster.”
For Draft, the end goal is straight forward. “I want to make lung cancer an issue that is so big, so talked about, that no one can ignore it.”
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