Abbott Awards Two Scholarships To Inspirational Students Living With Cystic Fibrosis

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Oct. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Abbott (NYSE: ABT) announced today the winners of the CFCareForward Thriving Undergraduate and Graduate Scholarship award.  Mark Moening, a Virginia Beach, Va. resident, and Wesley McSparin, a native of Paducah, Ky., were unveiled as the 2012 Thriving Undergraduate and Graduate Scholarship recipients, respectively.  In celebration of the 20 ^th anniversary of the program, the total award is $20,000.

Earlier this year, 40 undergraduate and graduate students living with cystic fibrosis (CF), including the Thriving Scholarship winners, were awarded $2,500 scholarships for use during the 2012-2013 school year based on their impressive academic merits, community involvement, extracurricular activities and creativity.  All 40 students then engaged in a month-long campaign for public votes which helped to determine the two recipients of the Thriving Scholarship awards.  The creative works of all scholarship students were inducted into the 2012 CFCareForward Scholarship recipient gallery and can be viewed online at www. CFCareForwardScholarship.com.

"Abbott is proud to recognize the enduring spirit and hard work of this talented group of young adults living with CF and to support their higher educational endeavors with scholarship funding this year," said Jim Hynd, divisional vice president, Cardiovascular Care, Metabolics and GI Care.  "The positive reception we have received from the CF community over the past two decades continues to underscore the importance of upholding the tradition of this program."

Cystic fibrosis is an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive systems of approximately 30,000 children and adults in the United States.  More than 70 percent of people with CF are diagnosed by age two.  

Due to advances in medical treatments, more young adults with CF are living longer, healthier lives than ever before, and increasingly are pursuing higher education.  Today, more than 45 percent of people living with CF are aged 18 or older.

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