9/11 Ground Zero Lung Cancer Survivor Educates Tampa On Lung Health

In 2011, eleven years after 911, Ground Zero volunteer Jack Sica was told he had lung cancer and had less than a year to live.

Prior to Sica’s diagnosis, he was feeling fine, working hard in a nursing home and living life as usual. When Sica noticed a small bump on his rib, and occasionally felt a little winded, he consulted his primary care physician.

“From that moment on I was determined to take one day at a time, not to take on too much, take care of myself and just live my life,” said Sica.

“Who hasn’t been around smoke or breathed in poor air at some point in their lives?” Sica rhetorically asks. “Most of us probably have. I assisted at Ground Zero in the immediate days following 9/11 and I was a DJ in my 20s and 30s, spinning records in bars when smoking was allowed indoors, doing what I loved, but no one deserves cancer. There is such a negative stigma about lung cancer, unlike other cancers.”

Today, Sica has proven the naysayers wrong, living a full life and spending time with the love of his life, Roberto, and with friends while cooking, watching movies and adding rare finds to his growing record collection. Sica encourages friends to get scanned for lung cancer and is actively working with the American Lung Association to educate the community about lung health.

Sica is doing his part to spread the word, and on Jan. 18, he will share his lung cancer journey at the American Lung Association’s annual Lip Sync for Lungs Live Battle at Higgins Hall on the campus of St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Tampa. This unique, action-packed event features local celebrities in a wildly entertaining setting that raises funds to provide lung health programs in Tampa and lung disease research.

“It is my hope that I can provide comfort to someone living with lung disease and give those attending the event a little piece of information that just might save their life — lung cancer screenings save lives,” said Sica.

“Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., but there is hope,” said Steven Riddle, executive director of the American Lung Association in Tampa Bay. “If lung cancer is caught before it spreads, the chance of surviving five years or more increases to over 60 percent. If you or a loved one smoked, take the lung cancer screening eligibility quiz at SavedByTheScan.org."

For more information on the sixth annual Lip Sync For Lungs on Jan. 18 and tickets, visit LipSyncForLungsTampa.org.

About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to champion clean air for all; to improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and to create a tobacco-free future.

For more information about the American Lung Association, which has a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and is a Platinum-Level GuideStar Member, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.

American Lung Association • 55 W. Wacker Drive, Suite 1150 • Chicago, IL 60601

1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Ste. 1425 North • Washington, D.C. 20004

1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) Lung.org