Lisa Myatt of Sussex is going to participate in the Fight for Air Climb in honor of her mother, Leslie Mann.
Mann is alive and well today thanks to her cousin who had heard a radio ad about a lung cancer scan.
"Those of us 70 and older and had ever been a smoker — it was a good idea to have a CT scan on your lungs just to be sure, better than a chest X-ray," Mann said.
She and her cousin got the scan and learned they both had lung cancer even though they had no symptoms.
"You go through denial," Mann said, "and how did I feel? Scared to death."
She was scared to tell her son and daughter. "I had to be an actress because I didn't want to frighten them."
What made things even more difficult was the distance between them. Leslie and her son live in California, and her daughter lives in Sussex.
But with good doctors and family support, Leslie has had cancer twice and beat it twice.
"I'm a walking portrait of early detection."
Now Lisa is practicing to do the Fight for Air Climb, which benefits the American Lung Association.
"It just touched my heart on so, so many levels that they wanted to do this in my honor," Mann said.
Lisa and her co-workers from Anthem climb for those who cannot.
"It just touched my heart on so, so many levels that they wanted to do this in my honor." — Leslie Mann, cancer survivor
"And especially in honor of my mom," Lisa said, "because she is a lung cancer survivor and in memory of her cousin who unfortunately lost the battle."
One battle lost but another fought twice and won, all thanks to a radio ad encouraging a CT scan.
"It's very scary, but it's very important because early detection will save a life," Mann said.
The 11th Fight for Air Climb is Saturday, March 9 at the U.S. Bank Center in downtown Milwaukee.
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