WPIX anchor Kaity Tong has been diagnosed with Stage 1 lung cancer.
“Hello from Home. I have some news to share. I was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. Me, a nonsmoker my entire life!” Tong shared on social media. “But the doctors told me this diagnosis is increasingly common among Asians, especially women, who are nonsmokers. That would be me. And maybe that’s YOU. And that’s why I’m sharing this.
If you fit this profile I urge you to talk with your doctor and determine whether you should get tested, even if you don’t have symptoms. It was through a routine chest X-ray after an especially bad cold that my cancer was detected.”
The New York anchor said she has had surgery to have the tumor removed and that she was lucky that it was found before it could spread.
“I am now recovering at home. It’s been a slow but steady recovery. Mainly to restore my breathing to normal and to help the rest of my lungs compensate for the loss of one lobe. Baby steps. I’ve been off the air at @pix11news for a few weeks now and hope to be back by mid-January.”
While Tong expressed gratitude for her doctors, she also said, “If my journey encourages even one person who fits this profile to get a checkup leading to early detection, I will be grateful.”