Our family has established this fund, with the same Love, Strength, Courage and Passion that Kathy lived and fought by every day, to support the continued research of Dr. Evan Alley and his Team at The Abramson Cancer Center at Penn Medicine in developing remedies in the ultimate cure of Lung Cancer.

Our lives changed forever on July 6, 2012, when Kathy was diagnosed with a mass in her right lung, which was subsequently determined to be non-small cell lung cancer, at the age of 49. Upon additional testing, the diagnosis changed to Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer, as the cancer had metastasized to her brain.

We didn't know what was happening; how this was happening. Kathy wasn't a smoker, wasn't on medications for any health issues? It all started with a cough.

We were initially shell-shocked in disbelief and fear. However, we quickly realized, regardless of this fate, Kathy was going to be the exception, not the rule. We were determined to live each day to the fullest and not allow the cancer to dictate our lives – through the love of our family (five forever), our faith and our medical team.

It is in this spirit that this fund is established and so very special to our family!

Kathy had an undeniable love and passion for her family, a deep dedication to her faith, an unmatched strength in her determination, along with her confidence and conviction in Dr. Alley and his team at Penn.

Dr. Alley was Kathy's comfort and confidence by always providing remedies, treatments and alternatives to ever changing diagnosis. From their first meeting forward, Kathy believed in Dr. Alley and Dr. Alley believed in Kathy, which gave Kathy and our family the strength and conviction we needed to fight and live strong each day. Dr. Alley always provided a positive attitude with cutting edge remedies to Kathy's treatment. During our appointments, when Kathy would ask Dr. Alley in trepidation, "Are you still on board with me?", Dr. Alley would respond without hesitation, "Of course I am." It was Dr. Alley's words and actions that allowed Kathy to leave his office with confidence, comfort and conviction. Dr. Alley is also the exception and not the rule, for his dedication to his research and patients.

It wasn't until after Kathy passed away on August 10, 2014, in speaking with Dr. Alley, that we were made aware, based on Kathy's initial diagnosis in July, 2012 of Stage IV Lung Cancer, her survival was estimated at two to seven months.

Kathy defied the odds! Kathy beat lung cancer for 25 months!

We believe in Kathy's strength, determination and passion for life! We believe in Dr. Alley and his team at Penn's dedication, determination and passion in their research to find a cure for this devastating disease.

The Kathleen M. Rotz Lung Cancer Research Fund has been established exclusively for Dr. Evan Alley and his team at The Abramson Cancer Center at Penn Medicine to eradicate Lung Cancer through research, clinical trials and treatments. Current trends and projections indicate lung cancer will turn into a chronically managed disease by the year 2023. We believe we can help bridge the gap with our fund. We will be making periodic announcements for fund raising events during the year on this website.

We thank everyone who has already contributed to make this fund a reality and look forward to continuing to satisfy the mission of the fund in eradicating lung cancer. Thank you for your support!