Real Radon Stories- MUST READ

These are real, personal stories posted at http://lungcancer.about.com/u/ua/causesoflungcance1/radon.htm- Radon Stories If you or someone you know has a radon story, please share it. The more awareness we raise about radon, the more lives can be saved. Joe's Story and Legacy When we went to the oncologist, he told us that radon is a known cause of lung cancer. Joe’s lung cancer had already spread to his liver and bones, and he lived six weeks after his diagnosis. Oh my God how I wish I had known beforehand that my husband and I had been living with over four times the EPA action level of radioactive radon gas in our home for 18 years. I discovered this fact one month after Joe’s death. I devote my life to changing laws, educating the public including physicians and legislators, and sharing Joe’s story so no one else is unaware of the deadly power of this invisible killer. It is so very easy to test your home for radon gas and to lower the level with the installation of a mitigation system. Radon gas is present in every state in our nation; it doesn’t discriminate between new or old homes, brick or frame, basement or no basement. The only way to know if a high level of radon is in your home is to test. —GloriaLinnertz Radon in My Home I am a 52 year old 3rd grade teacher who has lived a healthy life style. I have never smoked, never lived with smokers and never worked in a smoking environment, yet I was diagnosed with lung cancer in December of 2008. I was shocked, and so I started researching to find out how I ended up with lung cancer. I found out that radon is believed to be the leading cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers. I immediately bought a radon test kit and tested my home (the kit cost us $10). The results came back at over 250 pCi/L. The EPA recommends that people fix their homes when the radon level is between 2 pCi/L and 4 pCi/L. Once we knew about the toxically high concentration of radon in our home, the fix was easy. Forty eight hours after the radon ventilation fan was turned on, the radon level dropped to average 1 pCi/L. I was fortunate, my lung cancer was found while still in stage 1 through an unrelated lung x-ray. My prognosis is great and I am back to teaching. —Debbie Greenman