L-R  Sir Charles Gairdner based Thoracic Cancer Clinical nurse consultants Kirsten Mooney and Caitlin Broderick.
Camera IconL-R Sir Charles Gairdner based Thoracic Cancer Clinical nurse consultants Kirsten Mooney and Caitlin Broderick. Credit: Supplied/Andrew Ritchie

Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital-based nurse consultants to climb Jacob’s Ladder for lung cancer awareness

Victoria RificiWestern Suburbs Weekly

THORACIC Cancer Clinical nurse consultants Kirsten Mooney and Caitlin Broderick will climb Jacob’s Ladder 55 times to raise lung cancer awareness.

“Climbing the ladder 55 times as a team of ten will represent the 12,741 Australians predicted to be diagnosed with lung cancer this year as 242 steps multiplied by 55 climbs is equivalent to 13,310,” Ms Mooney said.

East Park resident Ms Mooney and Kewdale resident Ms Broderick are both part of the WA Cancer Palliative Care network based at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

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The women will join another eight lung cancer clinicians from across the North, South and East metro health services at 8am next Saturday to commemorate lung cancer awareness month.

Ms Mooney said 30 per cent of women and 10 per cent of men diagnosed with lung cancer have never smoked, and many people stopped smoking several years before their diagnosis.

She said there was a common belief that people who have lung cancer deserve it because it’s a direct result of smoking.

“We have a blame and shame process and less public empathy… and this can result in fewer research dollars,” she said.

“A survey was done a while ago and Australia felt people deserved lung cancer due to their history and we’re trying to abolish that.”

Ms Broderick said their goal of raising $500 for Lung Foundation Australia has already been surpassed.

“We’ve already raised over $620 and all proceeds will go direct to lung cancer research,” she said.

To donate go to https://bit.ly/2JHidPe.