(FreedomBeacon.com)- The family of legendary actor John Wayne, whose real name was Marion Robert Morrison, is using his legacy to help fight cancer with the John Wayne Cancer Foundation.
In an interview with Fox 4, the late actor’s granddaughter Anita La Cava Swift said that she became passionate about helping other people battling cancer during her grandfather’s final days. Wayne passed away after battling stomach cancer, though not before he beat lung cancer way back in 1964.
“My grandfather, when he was dying, asked his family to find a cure for cancer by using his image and likeness, so that’s what we’ve been doing,” she told Fox.
The foundation set up in Wayne’s name works to prevent cancer and educate people about the causes of the disease. Through the “Block the Blaze” initiative, children learn from activists within the organization how exposure to the sun can cause skin cancer.
Around 50,000 children have already been educated by the program thanks to summer programs set up in schools across the country.
During the internet, La Cava Swift also talked about the importance of grown men and women going for regular health checkups to potentially spot cancer early.
She advised women to get regular mammograms and men to get prostate examinations every year. She also advised that getting a dermatologist to check out the body for moles can help prevent skin cancer from developing, too.
You can see more of the interview here.
John Wayne’s legacy lives on, not just in his acting work in legendary films like “Shepherd of the Hills,” but also in cancer education.
