I’m bringing a better future for people living with a lung condition closer
Fran, BLF supporter tells us about why she’s leaving a gift in her will to the BLF. In her blog she shares some of the exciting projects she’s read about that will bring hope and a better future for people with a lung condition.
Hello, my name is Fran. Like you, I’m a BLF supporter. Perhaps also like you, I have a serious lung condition.
I was diagnosed with bronchiectasis just over 20 years ago, which is when my close relationship with the British Lung Foundation began. I first came across the BLF when I picked up a leaflet in my local hospital when I was first diagnosed. I had been feeling alone and quite anxious but, when I read that leaflet, I knew I’d found the clear and trustworthy advice and support I’d been looking for.
That advice and support, via the website and on the phone, has been more vital than ever before during this past difficult and frightening couple of years
Every day, the more I come to know about BLF – their amazing and game-changing research, and history of making life better and easier for patients like me – the more I feel grateful they were there. As a BLF supporter yourself, maybe you feel the same?
After so many years of help and advice, and through some really dark and challenging times – including the fear and confusion of the coronavirus pandemic – I wanted to do something meaningful to show my support and gratitude.
So, I have left a gift in my will to the BLF. And by doing that, I can keep supporting the fight against lung disease long after I’m gone.
Will you do the same and leave a gift in your will to the British Lung Foundation? Gifts in wills are so important and even a small amount can really make a difference to people’s lives.
Reading about the BLF’s research, it’s clear that their inspiring breakthroughs have led to real improvements for patients like me, thanks to the kindness of people like you. For example, not too long ago, when a child got pneumonia, the best treatment available was antibiotics through a drip. Now, thanks to BLF research, the same treatment is available as a tablet, which is easier and less terrifying for the young patient to take, much cheaper to make – and recovery times are quicker, too.
Your kindness is helping to fund potentially life-changing research projects that are happening right now.
The BLF has also been active in a ground-breaking research programme into Long Covid – what causes it, its impact and effect on people with respiratory diseases, and how it might be treated.
I’m biased of course, but I’ve read about a project that Professor James Chalmers and his team are doing to improve treatments for bronchiectasis, and it sounds really hopeful. Another exciting project I’ve read about, which is being run by Professor Louise Wain, is looking at how a patient’s genetic information can be used to provide a personalised approach to prevention, diagnosis and treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD ).
These brilliant researchers are bringing a better future for people living with a lung condition closer – and you can be part of it, by choosing to leave a gift in your will to the British Lung Foundation.
You can read more about the impact of gifts in wills on the research of the future on the BLF website.
Of course, making or amending your will is a serious matter, and I appreciate you will want to consider your family and friends first.
But if you are thinking of leaving a gift in your will to the BLF, do get in touch with Elle Cohen, who is their friendly Legacy Manager by emailing legacies@blf.org.uk. She can answer your more detailed questions and talk you through the process.
If you believe in the power of research and want to help stop so many people suffering with lung disease, I do hope you’ll join me and choose to make the British Lung Foundation part of your legacy. I find their determination and focus so inspiring – and their brilliant and innovative researchers give me hope for the future.
I hope my blog will inspire you to leave a gift in your will to the BLF and help fund the cutting-edge research that could find the answer to ending lung disease for good.
Thank you so much for reading.
We empower people with lung conditions to make changes that can be transformative.
Please donate now to help make sure people with lung conditions can live well this year.
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Our amazing supporter, Gerard, sadly lost his wife Margaret to bronchiectasis in October 2023. This year he took on a special challenge to remember her and raise awareness of this condition. Here he tells us all about the challenge and what it meant to him.