DEBORAH MOROSINI, MD

A Legacy of Hope and Forging Ahead:
Dana Reeve’s Sister Steps Up to Take On the Tragedy of Lung Cancer

After her sister Dana Reeve died of lung cancer, days before her 45th birthday, Deborah Morosini took up her sister’s legacy of strength, courage and a willingness to find hope in what to the world may seem the impossible.

A mother of two and a medical doctor, Deborah stepped up in her sister’s memory, and on behalf of all who have been affected by lung cancer, to get a jump on this not-so-silent killer. Recently, she joined forces with our Foundation to raise a loud collective voice in the fight against this deadly disease.

In just a little more than a year, her crusade has led to unforgettable lessons of hope, frustration and a maze of funding, government and stigma roadblocks that cloud the issue and keep treatment and cures for this deadly cancer elusive. She’s determined to raise public awareness of lung cancer to step up research and support for the cause. She is unstoppable.

Here is her story told in the first of two-parts:

In August, of 2005, Deborah Morosini and her husband Charlie and sons, James 17, and Peter, 15, were at Logan International Airport in Boston, shuffling through security and biding time waiting to embark on a family vacation to India.

Glancing up at the television monitors, Deborah and her family would be reminded, over and over and over again, of the crushing news the world was just learning: Dana Reeve, 44, wife of Superman Christopher Reeve, Deborah’s little sister, and the boys’ aunt, had been diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer.

“It all happened in such public way,” says Deborah. “Being stuck at an airport with the news repeating it over and over, was just not a great place to be. It was devastating.”

Seven months later, Dana, tireless crusader for paralysis, mother extraordinaire for her son Will, and “Mother of the Year for the American Cancer Society,” would lose her battle with lung cancer. A nation, now glued to their televisions again, would express their shock and mourn deeply the loss of Dana, who they had come to embrace as the epitome of a woman filled with grace, courage, and determination.

It’s fair to say, that for those of us watching from a distance, yet feeling it so closely in our hearts, it seemed so unfair.

“Life isn’t supposed to happen the way it was for our family,” says Deborah. “Chris had died. My mother had just died, and now Dana was diagnosed with lung cancer.

“I realized then that you become a survivor the moment you are diagnosed. You decide right now this is all happening, but my sister is still alive, yes she is really sick. But we need to live in the moment. She is still here and we need to put our worries aside.”

Certainly, Dana and Christopher Reeve had become public icons of survival, and inspirations for the world to draw strength from, following the 1995 horseback riding accident that left Christopher a vent-dependent quadriplegic. Together, with their laser-like focus on paralysis and stem cell research, the couple and the forces they rallied shone a spotlight on an injury for which research was poorly funded. They made it a cause.

Now, for the second time, the world would focus their lens on a disease that for a long time has been swept under carpet as the stigma cancer.

“From Chris we were inspired, okay, see what happened with this, now we might be able to make a shift in the way we look at lung cancer,” says Deborah.

And these days, when she’s not at work researching cancer as a pathologist at AstraZeneca, or taking care of her two teen sons, Deborah has made it her life’s passion and mission to speak to audiences, legislators - anyone who will listen about the terrible tragedy of her sister’s death, and the tragedy of lung cancer and treatment, or lack of it today.

“My sister and Chris created a positive legacy. They showed the world that out of crisis, you can make a life; you can have a sense of humor and not fall apart. They touched so many people … people including myself who maybe looked at them, and said, ‘okay, I can get through this … I can remain optimistic.”

Most importantly, Dana and Christopher Reeve showed the world that despite illness, despite fate, despite forces we can’t control, the only thing you can control is what you leave behind.

“My sister and Chris did not leave a suffering legacy. They have a young child, Will, and they both were committed to living to the last second. They both had very many bright moments until the very end. ”

Part Two: Learn what Dr. Deborah Morosini and lung cancer advocates are doing to make a difference.

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