LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- Driven to find strength through the power of family love while on a terrifying journey, Tiffany Graham Charkosky on Oct. 21 releases her debut memoir, “Living Proof: How Love Defied Genetic Legacy.”

It’s not a coincidence that the timing of the Lakewood author’s book release is tied to National Hereditary Cancer Awareness Week (Sept. 29-Oct. 5).

“I discovered about 13 years ago that my family carried a genetic mutation called Lynch syndrome,” said Charkosky, who grew up in Lakewood before moving to Lorain County and graduating from Keystone High School in 2000. “My mom died of colon cancer when I was 11.

“For most of my life, I just sort of chalked that up to bad luck -- like a thing that happened in my past, but I had survived and grown stronger. Then I learned that i

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