[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 648 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 648

 Designating September 2018 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month''.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 25, 2018

 Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Crapo, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. 
  Murphy, Ms. Warren, Mr. Hatch, Ms. Smith, Mr. King, and Mr. Risch) 
 submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Designating September 2018 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month''.

Whereas pulmonary fibrosis is a debilitating and ultimately fatal lung condition 
        that causes progressive scarring in the lungs and has no definitive 
        cause;
Whereas as many as 200,000 individuals in the United States are known to suffer 
        from pulmonary fibrosis, the majority of whom are aged 50 and older;
Whereas the average life expectancy from the diagnosis of the idiopathic form of 
        pulmonary fibrosis is just 2.8 years, and as many as 80 percent of 
        idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patients die within 5 years of diagnosis;
Whereas pulmonary fibrosis takes the lives of 40,000 or more individuals in the 
        United States each year--approximately 1 individual every 13 minutes;
Whereas many patients afflicted with pulmonary fibrosis are misdiagnosed for 1 
        year or longer after the patients are presenting with pulmonary fibrosis 
        symptoms;
Whereas, as of July 2018, there are no confirmed biomarkers for screening and 
        testing for pulmonary fibrosis;
Whereas a cure, treatment, or drug to halt the fibrotic process in pulmonary 
        fibrosis does not yet exist;
Whereas the symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis vary from person to person and 
        include shortness of breath, a dry cough, fatigue, weight loss, and 
        aching muscles and joints;
Whereas volunteers, researchers, caregivers, and medical professionals are 
        working to improve the quality of life for individuals with pulmonary 
        fibrosis and for the families of those individuals; and
Whereas developing more effective treatments for pulmonary fibrosis and 
        providing access to quality care to individuals with pulmonary fibrosis 
        requires increased research, education, and community support services: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates September 2018 as ``Pulmonary Fibrosis 
        Awareness Month'';
            (2) supports the goals and ideals of Pulmonary Fibrosis 
        Awareness Month;
            (3) continues to support more robust and accelerated 
        research to develop more effective treatments for pulmonary 
        fibrosis and to ultimately find a cure for the disease;
            (4) recognizes the courage and contributions of individuals 
        with pulmonary fibrosis who participate in vital clinical 
        trials to advance the knowledge of the disease; and
            (5) commends the dedication of organizations, volunteers, 
        researchers, and millions of individuals in the United States 
        and abroad working to improve the quality of life for 
        individuals with pulmonary fibrosis and the families of those 
        individuals.
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