ndd sponsors Leonard Nimoy tribute film - COPD: Highly Illogical
ndd Endorses Film’s Message of Earlier Diagnosis
ndd Endorses Film’s Message of Earlier Diagnosis
ANDOVER, Mass. — January 11, 2016 – Spirometry market leader ndd Medical Technologies, Inc. is the sole Pulmonary Function Testing (PFT) sponsor of a new documentary about Leonard Nimoy’s struggle with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). COPD is an umbrella term that describes progressive lung diseases including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
COPD: Highly Illogical – A Special Tribute to Leonard Nimoy entertains while educating viewers about COPD through the actor’s story and those of other sufferers, detailing the latest diagnostic techniques, treatments and the quest for a cure. Nimoy, who gave his blessing to the project at the end of his life, died of complications from COPD in February 2015. The documentary will be released later this year to coincide with Star Trek’s 50th anniversary. Nimoy’s daughter, Julie, and her husband David Knight are co-producers.
“Leonard felt he had a responsibility to educate people about COPD and create awareness,” explained Knight. After his diagnosis in 2013, Nimoy went public with his condition and became a COPD activist on social media. Knight said it’s likely his father-in-law suffered from COPD years before his official diagnosis and one of the film’s goals is to reach the estimated 12 million people who have the disease, but do not know it. COPD is the third leading cause of death in the U.S.
“We at ndd are very excited to be involved with this project and as a company that develops pulmonary function testing equipment, we believe this documentary will be a game changer,” said Joy Tobin, ndd’s Director of Marketing. “If diagnosed early, COPD can be managed and quality of life improved. This movie will deliver that message far and wide.”
Nimoy, who immortalized the Star Trek character Mr. Spock, began smoking as a young teenager growing up in Boston, but quit in 1986, according to Knight. Nimoy was shocked by the diagnosis, because he hadn’t smoked in three decades.