For myself and my family, November will be a month of healing. A month to remember tragedy, and to pray for triumph, and a month to bring awareness to a cause that is close to our hearts. November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month.

My grandmother was formally diagnosed in, oddly enough, November 2015. After putting off biopsies and treatment for several months, the good Lord took her home on June 24, 2016. She had been a smoker for the majority of her life, but at the time of her diagnosis, she hadn't touched a cigarette in nearly five years.

According to the American Lung Association, there will be an estimated 158,080 lung cancer deaths in the year 2016. That accounts for 27 percent of all cancer deaths. Between the years of 2005 and 2010 130,659 patients died from lung cancer that was attributed to smoking. 130,659 deaths were 100 percent preventable. Here are just a few more statistics:

1. Lung cancer is the second most common cancer.

2. It accounts for 14 percent of all new cancer diagnosis.

3. 2 out of 3 people who are diagnosed with lung cancer are 65 or older.

4. 70 is the average age at the time of diagnosis.

5. More than half of all lung cancer patients lose die within one year.

It's so hard to believe that because of a nasty habit, my grandmother became a statistic. She became a reason for me to bring awareness to you about the effects of smoking, and how you can prevent lung cancer. She became my angel.