Inaugural 'Here Comes Summer' Benefit Fuels Lung Cancer Research, Honors Legacy of Donna Summer

Sold-Out Event at Richland Country Club Unites Music Community, Patients, and Researchers for Lung Cancer Research

NEW YORK, June 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF) hosted its inaugural 'Here Comes Summer' benefit in Nashville on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at Richland Country Club, raising $185,000 to date in critical funds for lung cancer research while honoring the life and legacy of legendary entertainer Donna Summer, who passed away from lung cancer in 2012. Because Nashville was her home for many years, it is especially fitting to honor her in Music City. The sold-out evening brought together members of the Nashville music, healthcare, and business community, cancer researchers, clinicians, and patients for a night of purpose-driven celebration.

The program featured remarks from lung cancer experts and patient advocates, a Donna Summer tribute video, a live auction and paddle raise led by Matt Rogers, widely known as the Voice of the Tennessee Titans, and a presentation honoring the Sudano family for their dedication to advancing lung cancer research in Donna Summer's memory.

Among the many distinguished guests, Debby Boone, a longtime client and friend of Susan Munao, and Hunter McVey, cast member of the hit television series Nashville 911, also joined the evening's program.

An Evening of Purpose: Honoring Donna Summer's Legacy
Event Chair Susan Munao, who was Donna Summer's longtime manager, collaborator, and close friend, opened the evening with deeply personal remarks about the losses that led her to this mission: "This is more than fundraising. it's about building a community of people who refuse to accept the status quo. A community that believes patients and families facing lung cancer deserve better, and we are committed to accelerating that progress."

Ms. Munao spoke candidly about the disease's reach into her own life: losing both her sister and her closest friend and client to lung cancer, and more recently learning of a former sister-in-law's diagnosis. Her remarks brought a sharp personal urgency to the evening's mission. "That call was a wake-up call for me. For the first time, I asked myself whether I should be screened. I learned that many people who may be at risk don't qualify under current screening guidelines, me included. So I decided to pay for the CT scan myself. But it left me with a question: How many others are out there who don't know they're at risk? That's why I'm on a mission. We need better ways to identify risk. We need early detection. We need more research."

Honoring the Sudano Family
One of the evening's more poignant moments came when Grammy-winning producer and arranger Michael Omartian and his wife Stormie Omartian, dear friends of Donna Summer and Susan Munao, presented a special recognition to the Sudano family for their dedication to advancing lung cancer research in Donna Summer's name. Donna's eldest daughter, Mimi Dohler, and her first granddaughter, Vienna, accepted the honor on behalf of the family.

Mimi Dohler, addressing the audience with a reflection on her mother's diagnosis and the ripple effect of lung cancer on their family, said, "Lung cancer leaves a legacy too. It's a ripple effect that extends far beyond the patient—whether it's your mother, father, sister, brother, spouse, child, or friend. This disease changes lives forever… That's why we can't stop pushing for progress. Research gives us hope. Early detection saves lives. And every investment made in research today creates the possibility of a better outcome for someone tomorrow."

Donna Summer's husband Bruce Sudano, unable to attend from Italy, sent a personal message read by Mimi during the program: "It's such a great thing that Susan Munao is creating here, sounding the alarm of early detection for lung cancer. God bless Donna Summer and God bless us all."

A Moment on Progress in Lung Cancer Research
David Spigel, MD, President and Chief Medical Officer of Sarah Cannon Research Institute and a member of LCRF's Scientific Advisory Board, brought an on-the-ground perspective to the state of lung cancer research, drawing on patient stories from his own clinic as well as major findings presented the previous week at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting in Chicago. He remarked, "When I started 23 years ago, there were really no treatments for lung cancer. My attending told me it didn't matter which treatment we chose. That was in 2000. That kind of answer makes no sense anymore because there are so many ways to help people with lung cancer today." Dr. Spigel went on to say,"Research is just integral to lung cancer care. The science is there. We can understand targets, we can design drugs, we can run trials. But all of this takes effort and investment. Your support of lung cancer research is an important piece in that fight, not just here in Nashville, but across the world."

Patient Speaker: "Research Is Time"

Patient advocate and lung cancer survivor Stephen Huff delivered one of the evening's most moving addresses. Diagnosed at age 29 with stage 4 lung cancer, despite being a non-smoker and former professional baseball player, Huff shared how targeted research changed the course of his life. "When I was diagnosed in 2017, the future felt very uncertain. My doctors tested my tumor and discovered that I have a specific genetic alteration called ALK-positive. Because researchers had spent years studying that mutation, there was actually a targetable treatment. This treatment has given me time—time to celebrate anniversaries, to continue building my career, to become a father. Today, Emily and I have two beautiful young children."

Huff spoke with conviction about the direct relationship between donor investment and patient outcomes. "The reason I'm standing here tonight is because years before I was diagnosed, someone invested in research. Someone donated. Someone funded a grant. Someone believed in an idea before they even knew whether it would work. And because they did, a scientist had the opportunity to ask a question that ultimately discovered what is changing my life," he said. "Research isn't abstract. Research is bedtime stories to my daughter. It's getting to watch my son play baseball. Research is time. Your generosity has a face, it has a family, it has a story. I'm one of them."

The event was made possible through the generosity of sponsors including Ascension Saint Thomas, AstraZeneca, Creative Audio, Hearn Charitable Foundation, Outback Presents, Pinnacle Financial Partners, Rubicon Founders, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, Soundcheck Nashville, Stephen Brush, The Sudano Family, Tennessee Oncology, Universal Music Enterprises, and many additional individual and organizational supporters.

Reflecting on what the evening represented, LCRF Executive Director Aubrey Rhodes said, "The Nashville community continues to show what is possible when people come together around a shared purpose. Every dollar raised and every person involved in this event helps move us closer to a future where more lives are saved from lung cancer. We are deeply grateful to the volunteers, sponsors, donors, and advocates who make this progress possible."

Recent News Coverage of Event

Susan Munao was recently interviewed by Nashville News 5 about Donna Summer, lung cancer, and her mission to bring awareness to the disease, raise funds for research and advocate for early detection.

About the Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF)

The Lung Cancer Research Foundation® (LCRF) is the leading nonprofit organization focused on funding innovative, high-reward research with the potential to extend survival and improve quality of life for people with lung cancer. LCRF's mission is to improve lung cancer outcomes by funding research for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure of lung cancer. To date, LCRF has funded 450 research grants, totaling nearly $53 million, the highest amount provided by a nonprofit organization dedicated to funding lung cancer research. For more information about the LCRF grant program and funding opportunities, visit lcrf.org/research.

About Donna Summer

Donna Summer was one of the most influential and groundbreaking artists of the modern music era, with a career that transcended genre and helped shape the sound of popular music for generations. A five-time Grammy Award winner, six-time American Music Award winner, Academy Award honoree for "Last Dance," Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, and 2013 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, and Summer achieved more than 130 million albums sold worldwide and remains an enduring cultural icon.

Her historic achievements include becoming the only solo artist to have three consecutive double albums reach No. 1 on the Billboard charts, the first female artist to have four No. 1 singles in a 12-month period on the Billboard Hot 100, the first artist to win the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female, and the first-ever recipient of the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. Her timeless catalog includes "Love to Love You Baby," "I Feel Love," "Last Dance," "MacArthur Park," "Hot Stuff," "Bad Girls," "Dim All the Lights," "On the Radio," and "She Works Hard for the Money."

Her Tony-nominated Broadway musical, 'SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical,' continues to celebrate her life and music, and the documentary 'Love to Love You, Donna Summer' premiered in 2023.

Contacts:

For the LUNG CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION (LCRF)

Aubrey Kuhn, BRG Communications | (734) 548-5575 | [email protected]

Event Contact: Jeremy Westby, 2911 Media | (833) 537-2911 | [email protected]

SOURCE Lung Cancer Research Foundation