About Us
About Us
Our Mission
Sweat For Breath Foundation aims to extend and improve the lives of people with ALK+ lung cancer by raising funds for cutting-edge research and patient support programs and promoting awareness.
Our Vision
We envision a world where ALK+ lung cancer is a chronic or even curable condition and the next person diagnosed with lung cancer does not have to live under the current stigma.
Our Pledge
We will SWEAT so those impacted by ALK+ lung cancer can have more BREATH.
We will #SweatForBreath.
Our Impact
Raising Funds for Cutting-Edge Research
Since 2023, nearly 2,500 donors have given over $1.2 million towards the #SweatForBreath effort.
A majority of the proceeds have gone directly to The Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Center in Baltimore, MD to support Dr. Vincent Lam’s ALK+ lung cancer research. This support provided the critical funding needed to launch and expand Dr. Lam’s clinic trial, which is evaluating the safety of a cancer peptide vaccine to prevent or delay acquired resistance in advanced ALK+ lung cancer patients currently on ALK targeted therapy. Dr. Lam’s vaccine is the first ALK+ vaccine in the world to be tested in a clinical trial. Dr. Lam administered the vaccine to the first patient in clinic on May 13, 2024! Learn more about the trial here: https://oncodaily.com/oncolibrary/immune-oncology/archer-trial.
In 2026, the Sweat For Breath Foundation also contributed to the Lung Cancer Research Foundation’s ALK‑positive initiative, helping fund two $300,000, two‑year awards designed to accelerate new treatment options for people with ALK-positive lung cancer. Learn more about the initiative here: https://www.lungcancerresearchfoundation.org/alk-positive-research-award-2026/?c_src=website&c_src2=alk_positive_research_award_2026__535d93cd
Raising Funds for Patient Support Programs
In 2025, we launched our Hardship Assistance Grant to help lower the barrier for ALK+ lung cancer patients in getting a second opinion or participating in a clinical trial by offsetting the cost of flights, hotels, childcare, eldercare, etc.
Promoting Awareness
We are committed to promoting awareness of ALK‑positive lung cancer and confronting the stigma that has shaped this disease for decades. Too often, people assume lung cancer is something you cause — an implication that quietly assigns blame and shapes how patients are treated, supported, and funded. That misconception has contributed to years of underfunding and delayed research. We work to change that narrative by making it clear that anyone can get lung cancer and no one deserves it. By shifting public perception, we help open the door to earlier diagnoses, better support, and the research investment this community urgently needs.
- New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/paidpost/pfizer/the-modern-era-for-lung-cancer-patients.html
- CBS Mornings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6igdBUgeghE
- Washington Capitals: https://next.frame.io/share/bcbc1aee-d3fd-4032-9922-bfb7e7551ee2/view/5440eea8-1232-43d6-bb0e-f1bbdf18c4ff and https://www.nhl.com/capitals/video/sweat-for-breath-hockey-fights-cancer-6365025363112
- NCAA Lacrosse: Penn Men’s Lacrosse, Penn Women’s Lacrosse, UVA Men’s Lacrosse, Syracuse Men’s Lacrosse, Duke Men’s Lacrosse, Duke Women’s Lacrosse, High Point Men’s & Women’s Lacrosse, Providence Men’s Lacrosse
- Inside Lacrosse: https://www.insidelacrosse.com/article/athlete-to-advocate-sweat-for-breath-foundation-is-changing-the-narrative-around-lung-cancer/66046
- Kerrville Daily Times: https://dailytimes.com/news/local-runner-seeks-to-help-raise-awareness-of-rare-lung-cancer/article_21813712-a8cd-4ca6-a0f2-1998f09217ca.html
- Coffee With Ken: https://www.instagram.com/p/DRxItlLDoBB/?hl=en
- Go2 For Lung Cancer: https://go2.org/blog/from-patient-to-advocate-davids-story/
- American Lung Association: https://www.lung.org/lung-force/lung-force-heroes/david-c
Donor Impact Reports
Our Start
#SweatForBreath started as a grassroots fundraising campaign during Lung Cancer Awareness Month in 2023. After being diagnosed with Stage IV ALK+ lung cancer in November 2022, David Cornbrooks became keenly aware that he was benefiting from the selfless fundraising and awareness efforts of the patients before him.
The #SweatForBreath campaign in 2023 became David, and his wife, Lisa’s, way to help the next generation ALK+ lung cancer patients.
#SweatForBreath accelerated beyond more than just a typical fundraiser. The initiative quickly evolved into a community of patients, caregivers, family, and friends seeking to make David and Lisa’s vision a reality and the road to that vision more tolerable. People donated, sweat at the in-person cycle event, posted on social media, and helped fundraise through organizing group walks, selling art, “gifting” donations on behalf of clients, and much more.
Their success in 2023 compelled David and Lisa to officially transition the #SweatForBreath campaign into the Sweat For Breath Foundation, operating through a fiscal sponsorship with Players Philanthropy Fund, a Maryland charitable trust recognized by IRS as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 27-6601178).
Since then, David and Lisa furthered their mission of raising awareness through a nationally-broadcasted segment on CBS Mornings, features on the jumbotron at the Washington Capitals #HockeyFightsCancer night at Capital One Arena, and the New York Times!
Our Name
#SweatForBreath was the name of and social media hashtag for the grassroots fundraising campaign in November 2023. It builds on the message and core belief of ALK Positive, a patient-run advocacy group, that More Research = More Life and evoked a sense of urgency to do more.
Sweat
represents a call to action to exert a tireless effort to advance research for an underfunded disease at a tipping point.
Breath
symbolizes life and the extended life afforded by additional ALK+ lung cancer research.
David and Lisa asked family, friends, and colleagues to donate and post a picture of them doing an exercise or physical activity (i.e., “Sweat”) on social media to spread awareness of this disease.
[More Sweat = More Breath]
Our Community
Check out our amazing community, which has supported #SweatForBreath or donated to help make ALK+ lung cancer a chronic or curable condition.
