LCRF Gala Spotlights Women in Lung Cancer's Overlooked Crisis

NEW YORK, NY – April 07, 2026 – The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) is set to cast a powerful spotlight on a frequently misunderstood health crisis at its 2026 Gala. This year's event, held on September 23 at the historic Cipriani 25 Broadway, will honor two formidable women whose work has reshaped the landscape of lung cancer advocacy and research: long-time LCRF board member Rose Ann Weinstein and pioneering thoracic oncologist Dr. Narjust Florez. The gala aims to not only celebrate their contributions but also to rally support for a battle that is increasingly and disproportionately affecting women.

While the image of a lung cancer patient has long been stereotyped, the reality of the disease is shifting dramatically. The upcoming gala and its honorees represent a critical turning point in acknowledging and fighting the disease as a major women's health issue, supported by an organization with a proven track record of fiscal responsibility and research impact.

The Overlooked Epidemic: Lung Cancer's Growing Threat to Women

Lung cancer has quietly become the number one cancer killer of women in the United States, claiming more lives annually than breast, ovarian, and cervical cancers combined. Data from global health organizations paints an even starker picture, with over 600,000 women worldwide dying from the disease each year. This grim statistic defies a public perception that still lags behind the epidemiological reality.

Perhaps more alarmingly, the profile of the person diagnosed is changing. While diagnoses have been declining overall, research shows that lung cancer incidence rates in the United States are now higher among women aged 35 to 54 than in men of the same age group. Furthermore, women who have never smoked are more than twice as likely to develop lung cancer as their male counterparts. This trend dismantles the persistent and harmful stigma that lung cancer is solely a smoker's disease, revealing a complex web of risk factors including environmental exposures, hormonal influences, and genetic predispositions that researchers are racing to understand.

This new reality is at the heart of the LCRF's mission for its 2026 gala. The event will feature the personal story of patient advocate speaker Jill Frizzley, whose journey underscores the urgent need for research that addresses the unique challenges women face, from symptom dismissal by clinicians to diagnostic delays that can have life-or-death consequences.

Two Decades of Dedication: The Legacy of Rose Ann Weinstein

Driving the mission forward for twenty years has been Rose Ann Weinstein, a pillar of the LCRF community whose commitment is born from personal loss. Following her mother's battle with mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive cancer affecting the lining of the lungs, Weinstein channeled her grief into action. She joined LCRF in 2006, determined to help spare other families from similar heartbreak.

"Twenty years ago, spurred on by the loss of my mother, I showed up because I believed that by helping to remove the stigma surrounding lung cancer, raising awareness, and raising money for lung cancer research, I could have a small part in finding answers," Ms. Weinstein remarked. Her involvement, she notes, is about "honoring my mother's memory and hopefully giving others more time with the people they love."

Her impact has been anything but small. As a long-serving member of the LCRF Board of Directors, she has co-chaired the Strides for Life event and served as chair of the New York gala committee, transforming it into one of the most significant fundraising events in the lung cancer community. Aubrey Rhodes, Executive Director of LCRF, emphasized her indispensable role: "A tireless champion of lung cancer research, Rose Ann has dedicated the last twenty years to raising funds for breakthrough science... She has turned her personal loss into driving the mission of LCRF forward."

Ms. Weinstein's fundraising prowess and unwavering dedication have been instrumental in elevating LCRF from a community-focused foundation to a national leader, funding science that has directly contributed to better treatment options and increased survival rates.

A Clinical Imperative: Dr. Narjust Florez's Fight for Equity

Sharing the spotlight is Dr. Narjust Florez, a thoracic oncologist whose work is built on a radical premise: that women with lung cancer deserve to be believed. As Co-Director of the Young Lung Cancer Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Florez is at the forefront of a movement to dismantle systemic inequities in cancer care.

Her research in the Florez Lab focuses on the very populations historically left out of clinical conversations, particularly women and young adults under 50. She spearheads groundbreaking studies on how lung cancer and its treatments uniquely affect this demographic, from fertility and sexual health to the socioeconomic barriers that delay diagnosis and treatment. One of her key projects, the SHAWL Study, is the largest of its kind to evaluate sexual dysfunction in women with lung cancer, an often-overlooked aspect of quality of life.

In 2024, Dr. Florez and her mentee launched the #HearHer campaign, an international call to action for clinicians to listen to their female patients—not as a courtesy, but as a clinical imperative. The campaign directly confronts the issue of symptom dismissal that leads to devastatingly late diagnoses.

"Making sure that underserved and understudied individuals, especially women, receive the information, care and respect they need and deserve... is something I am passionate about," Dr. Florez stated. "The studies that we lead in my lab are specifically to understand the increasing rates of lung cancer in young women, develop screening tools for never tobacco users... and we are showing how to overcome these inequities with data and realistic and long-lasting interventions."

Galvanizing a Community: The Power of Philanthropy

The LCRF New York gala is more than an awards ceremony; it is a critical engine for the research that is changing the future of the disease. The foundation has a stellar reputation for fiscal responsibility, earning a top 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and directing 87 cents of every dollar to its mission-related programs. This efficiency has allowed LCRF to become a powerhouse in the field, granting nearly $53 million to 450 research projects to date—the highest amount from any nonprofit dedicated solely to lung cancer.

The funds raised at the September gala will directly support the kind of innovative, high-reward research championed by scientists like Dr. Florez. It will fuel projects aimed at understanding why young women are increasingly affected, developing new screening tools for non-smokers, and finding treatments that improve both survival and quality of life. The event brings together a powerful coalition of patients, advocates, researchers, and philanthropists, all united by the common goal articulated by Rose Ann Weinstein: "While I am proud of how far we have come, there is still so much more we need to do." The gala provides a vital opportunity for a community to come together and ensure that work gets done.