Title
Recognizing September 2016 as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in Philadelphia in Honor of Childhood Cancer Patients, Care Givers, Survivors, and Those Children Who Have Succumbed to the Disease; and Urging the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate to Pass House Resolution 3381 and Senate Bill 1883, Both Entitled, "Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research Act of 2015 or the Childhood Cancer STAR Act".
Body
WHEREAS, September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and every little gesture of support counts; from visiting children's hospitals to donating teddy bears to making socks for little patients' feet, giving a little bit of one's time is just as appreciated as giving part of one's paycheck for the cause of researching childhood cancers; and
WHEREAS, Across the world, a child is diagnosed with cancer every 2 minutes. Each year, approximately 15,780 children between birth and age 19 are diagnosed with cancer in the United States. Approximately 1 in 285 children in the United States will be diagnosed with cancer before their 20th Birthday; and
WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists cancer as the leading cause of death by disease in children and adolescents under age 14 in the United States. There are 12 major types of childhood cancer, and numerous subtypes make it challenging to find cures for every form of childhood cancer; and
WHEREAS, Adults lose an average of 15 years of life to cancer, but children lose an average of 71 years of life to cancer. The average age of diagnosis of childhood cancer patients is 6 years old. Despite this comparatively massive loss of productive years, only 4% of United States federal funding is solely dedicated to childhood cancer research; and
WHEREAS, Despite the significant unmet medical need, pharmaceutical companies have been reluctant to develop drugs appropriate for children with cancer because it requires making an investm...
Click here for full text