[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5869]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  NATIONAL BRAIN TUMOR AWARENESS MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Quigley) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. QUIGLEY. Mr. Speaker, nearly 700,000 people in the United States 
today are living with a brain tumor. Sadly, over 16,000 of them will 
lose their battles this year alone. Many of them will be children, with 
brain tumors being the leading cause of death from cancer for those who 
are under 14.
  Unfortunately, the treatment and removal of brain tumors presents 
significant challenges because of the brain's uniquely complex and 
fragile nature, due, in no small part, to there being more than 120 
different types of tumors. While brain tumor research is supported by a 
number of private nonprofit research foundations and by institutes at 
the National Institutes of Health, there still remain daunting 
obstacles in the development of new treatments. Moreover, there are 
currently no strategies for screening or for the early detection of 
brain tumors.
  Despite the number of new people who are diagnosed with brain tumors 
every year and their devastating prognoses over the past 30 years, 
there have only been four FDA-approved drugs and one device to treat 
brain tumors. On top of that, the four approved drugs have provided 
only incremental improvements to patient survival, and mortality rates 
remain little changed over the past 30 years.
  It is clear that much more must be done. That is why I am proud to 
introduce a resolution designating this May as National Brain Tumor 
Awareness Month.
  Throughout the month, advocates around the country unite to educate 
the public about brain tumors and to advocate for policies that are 
vital to the discovery of a cure. Their efforts are crucial for shining 
a light on the difficulties that are associated with research on brain 
tumors and the opportunities for advancements in brain tumor research 
and treatment.
  I ask my colleagues to honor those who have lost their lives to a 
brain tumor and to please support this resolution so we can move one 
step closer to ending this devastating disease.

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