Coming Together to Shine a Light on Lung Cancer

The Shine a Light on Lung Cancer event was the brainchild of a survivor who wants to draw attention to what she believes is an overlooked illness.

Diane Legg of Amesbury, Massachusetts, started the local gathering after she was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2005. It has since grown into an annual vigil sponsored by the Lung Cancer Alliance.

Legg told the Amesbury News that she wanted to combat misconceptions about the disease, such as the assumption that all people living with cancer of the lungs were smokers.

"I didn't think I would be here to see my youngest son start school," the mother of three told the news provider. "I have been given more time than most people get with this disease—early detection saved me."

Dana Reeve, the wife of actor Christopher Reeve, brought more attention to the struggles of non-smokers living with lung cancer after she was diagnosed in 2005.

According to the lung cancer alliance, the disease has taken the lives of approximately 1.6 million Americans since 2000—and, of this number, nearly 1 million either never smoked or quit smoking decades before their diagnosis.