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Laura's Diary: My So-Called Lungs
Laura Rothenberg is 21 years old, but, as she likes to say, she
already
had her mid-life crisis a couple of years ago, and even then it was a
few years late. Laura has cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder that
affects
the lungs and other organs. People with CF live an average of 30
years.
We gave Laura a tape recorder and, for two years, she kept an audio
diary
of her battle with the disease and her attempts to lead a normal life
with lungs than often betray her.
My So-Called Lungs (22 min) aired on August 5, 2002 on NPR's
All Things
Considered.
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We are really sad to report that Laura died in March 2003. A remembrance aired on NPR's All Things Considered.
BREATHING FOR A LIVING
In the last few months of her life, Laura finished her memoir, Breathing for a Living, published by Hyperion Books. Breathing for a Living is now in bookstores. It has been reviewed in The Washington Post , Glamour Magazine, Elle Girl, The San Francisco Chronicle, and others.
Check out Good Morning America's piece on Breathing for a Living.
HOW TO HELP
Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disease currently affecting 30,000 people in the United States. It was once considered a childhood disease, with a median survival of age 8. Today, people with CF often live into their 30s or 40s, but not without vigilant attention to their ever failing health. Find out more information on cystic fibrosis.
Become an organ donor, save a life
Please sign the back of your drivers license
and become an organ donor.
Make sure you tell your family about your decision.
Contributions to Laura's memory can be made to:
Children's Hospital Trust
138 Harvard Street
Brookline, MA 02446
Be sure to say that your contribution is for "The Laura Rothenberg Children's Hospital Fund"
READ letters a high school class in Kansas wrote to Laura.
CDs of My So-Called Lungs
Critical Acclaim
Read about Laura's story in The New York Times and US News and World Report [.PDF].
My So-Called Lungs won the bronze award at the Third Coast International Audio Festival held in Chicago in November.