National Lung Cancer Tree Planting Day

Today was the National Lung Cancer Tree Planting Day, so we joined in an activity in Royal Park, helping to plant 1802 trees in memory of the 1802 Victorians who died from lung cancer last year- and part of a national effort to commemorate the 7600 Australians who died of lung cancer.

Those figures make lung cancer the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Australia. Although there is a strong link between lung cancer and smoking, the majority of lung cancer deaths are in people who have done the right thing and quit smoking years before their cancer diagnosis, and there are a substantial number of deaths in Australians who have never smoked (1, 2).

The link between lung cancer and trees is that trees are the "lungs" of the planet, so the Tree Planting Day both increases awareness of lung diseases and improves Australia's tree lungs.

Needless to say, with unlimited access to water, dirt, trees and water, we also had fun!