Renowned Pulmonary Fibrosis Researcher Seeks Answers Before Hanging Up His Lab Coat

74-year-old Lung Disease Doctor Not Giving Up Now Even After 40 Years of Searching

DENVER, Jan. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Marvin Schwarz isn't ready for retirement, though several years ago, he stepped down from his position as head of the Pulmonary Sciences Critical Care Medicine Division at the University of Colorado Medical Center. Schwarz, a 74-year-old pulmonologist and lung disease researcher hasn't found what he's been looking for despite more than 40 years of searching -- the cure for the deadly lung disease he began investigating at the dawn of his career, a progressive and fatal disease that causes scarring of the lung called Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF).

PF has no FDA approved therapies and no cure and claims as many lives each year as breast cancer but unlike its survival rate of approximately 80 percent, PF has virtually no survivors.

Schwarz has treated thousands of patients with PF and he's seen patient after patient succumb to the relentless lung disease that continues to keep him up at night. In 2001, Schwarz was a founding board member of the Coalition for Pulmonary Fibrosis, a non-profit organization primarily focused on patient support and supporting research efforts.