[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 170 (Friday, October 12, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1400-E1401]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RAISING AWARENESS OF CHILDHOOD CANCER

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 12, 2018

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize and bring awareness 
to childhood cancer and the devastating effects it has on these young 
lives and their families.
  Cancer is a tough disease regardless of whom it affects.
  Recently, Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), a rare, highly malignant form of 
cancer, took the life of Mr. Kye Graceson Davis, a young resident of my 
Congressional district, at the tender age of six.
  On behalf of the 18th Congressional District of Texas, I extend my 
deepest sympathies to Kye's loving parents, Christopher and Kaysha 
Davis; his surviving siblings, Christopher Jr., Jade, Madison, and 
Kadence Davis; and all of Kye's loving family and friends.
  As a founder of the Congressional Children's Caucus, member of the 
Childhood Cancer Caucus, loving mother, and grandmother, children are 
near and dear to my heart.
  I cannot fathom the sorrow that the Davis family is experiencing, but 
I am grateful that to honor his memory, the City of Houston declared, 
October 21st, as ``Kye Graceson Davis Day.''
  Kye was an adventurous child who loved the outdoors, sports and 
learning, most notably spending time at the barn riding horses, or 
playing baseball with his Little League team.
  His favorite time of year in Houston was during the Houston Livestock 
Show and Rodeo, and he always had hopes of participating in the rodeo 
when he was old enough.
  Unfortunately, Kye's dreams were placed on hold when he was diagnosed 
with cancer in November of 2016.
  On January 11, 2018, after waging a valiant fight, Kye lost his fight 
with RMS.
  RMS is a type of sarcoma made up of cells that normally develop into 
skeletal (voluntary) muscles.
  RMS is also the most common type of soft tissue sarcoma in children.
  About two-thirds of RMS cases are diagnosed in children younger than 
age 10.
  There are three main types of RMS:
  Embryonal RMS occurs most often in the head and neck area or in the 
genital or urinary organs, but can occur anywhere in the body and is 
the most common type of this disease,
  Alveolar RMS occurs most often in the arms or legs, chest, abdomen, 
genital organs, or anal area, and
  Anaplastic RMS which is the least common type of rhabdomyosarcoma in 
children.
  RMS is more common in children, although it does sometimes occur in 
adults.
  According to the American Cancer Society: ``About 3 percent of all 
childhood cancers are RMS and there are an estimated 400 to 500 new 
cases of RMS reported each year in the United States with more than 
half of them in children younger than 10 years old.''
  Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) can start nearly anywhere in the body, so the 
symptoms of RMS can be different in each person.
  Signs and symptoms of rhabdomyosarcoma depend on where the cancer is 
located.
  For example, if the cancer is in the head or neck area, signs and 
symptoms may include, among others, headache, bulging or swelling of 
the eyes, bleeding in the nose, throat or ears.
  If the cancer is in the urinary or reproductive system, signs and 
symptoms may include, among others, trouble urinating and blood in the 
urine, difficulty with bowel movements, a mass or bleeding in the 
vagina or rectum.
  If the cancer is in the arms or legs, signs and symptoms may include, 
among others, swelling or a lump in the arm or leg, pain in the 
affected area, though sometimes there is no pain.
  In 2017, it was estimated that among children ages 0 to 14 years, 
10,270 will be diagnosed with cancer and 1,190 will die of the disease 
in 2017.
  RMS's 5-year survival rate for children is generally around 20 
percent to 40 percent because the kids in this group often have the 
metastatic form of this disease at the time they are diagnosed.
  Metastatic cancers are cancers that have spread to multiple parts of 
the body.
  RMS is almost always treated with both local therapy (surgery and/or 
radiation therapy) as well as chemotherapy.
  However, the details of treatment can vary based on a number of 
factors, including the location and extent of the tumor and which risk 
group the patient falls into.
  All children and adults with RMS will be treated with surgery to 
remove the tumor if it can be done without causing major damage or 
disfigurement.
  If this is not possible, chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy may be 
used first to try to shrink the tumor; if it shrinks enough, surgery 
can be done at this point.
  The goal of surgery is to remove the tumor completely, but this is 
not always possible.
  The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has a number of programs that 
address childhood cancers specifically, and many of the institute's 
other research programs are applicable to children with cancer even if 
they are not focused specifically on pediatric cancers.
  Because children's bodies are very sensitive to radiation, doctors 
are looking for ways to limit the doses as much as possible.
  Even if the tumor appears to have been removed completely, all 
patients with RMS need chemotherapy.
  Without it, it is very likely that the cancer will come back in 
distant parts in the body because small amounts of cancer have almost 
always reached other parts of the body when the cancer is first found 
(even though they can't be seen on imaging tests).
  If cancer is left behind after surgery or if the cancer has some less 
favorable traits and it has not spread to distant sites (as is the case 
most of the time), radiation therapy will also be given.
  For example, in stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), a special 
machine aims very thin beams of radiation at the tumor from many 
different angles, concentrating it on the tumor very precisely for 
short periods.
  Newer radiation therapy techniques allow doctors to aim the radiation 
more precisely, limiting the amount that reaches normal body tissues.
  The overall outlook for children with cancer has improved greatly 
over the last half-century.
  In 1975, just over 50 percent of children diagnosed with cancer 
before age 20 years survived at least 5 years.
  In 2007-2013, 83 percent of children diagnosed with cancer before age 
20 years survived at least 5 years.
  As of January 1, 2014, approximately 419,000 survivors of childhood 
and adolescent cancer (diagnosed at ages 0 to 19 years) were alive in 
the United States.
  For soft tissue sarcomas, 5-year survival rates in 2007 to 2013 among 
children and adolescents ages 0 to 19 years ranged from 65 percent 
(rhabdomyosarcoma) to 95 percent (chondrosarcoma), but children with 
sarcomas

[[Page E1401]]

who present with metastatic disease have much lower 5-year survival 
rates.
  We must continue to support institutions that treat and care for the 
littlest patients because they are our nation's next generation of 
engineers, lawyers, doctors, painters, writers, and leaders.
  We must continue to be vigilant in protecting the future of this 
country, which belongs to the youth.
  Although his life was short, Kye Graceson Davis will live in our 
memories forever.
  I urge my colleagues to continue supporting research measures that 
will protect the children of America and lead us to the elimination of 
childhood cancer.

                          ____________________