Each year the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society invites people whose lives have been touched by blood cancer to participate in its Man & Woman of the Year campaign. Jay Yang, M.D., assistant professor of Hematology and Oncology for the Wayne State University School of Medicine, and a member of the Malignant Hematology Multidisciplinary Team at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, has been nominated for this year's LLS Man & Woman of the Year.

The Man & Woman of the Year is a 10-week fundraising campaign that culminates in the Grand Finale event June 11. Dr. Yang has set a goal of raising $25,000 by that date.

"As a specialist in the treatment of leukemias and lymphomas, every day I see how research funding has translated to longer lives and cures for many of my patients," Dr. Yang said. "However, I also see firsthand that better and safer treatments are still necessary for many others. I applaud the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's efforts to raise awareness and funding for hematological cancers, and I am proud to help in that cause."

The society is funding $76.2 million nationally in grants in 2016 to create breakthrough advancements such as targeted therapies that zero in on cancer cells and kill them while leaving healthy cells intact, as well as immunotherapies that use a patient's own immune system to kill cancer. Treatments are saving the lives of patients every day who are diagnosed with blood cancers like chronic myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

To learn more about Dr. Yang's campaign, visit his fundraising page at http://www.mwoy.org/pages/mi/detroit16/jyangq.