Bill Text: VA HJR623 | 2011 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month; designating September 2011, and each succeeding year thereafter.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2011-02-22 - House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ623ER) [HJR623 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2011-HJR623-Enrolled.html
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WHEREAS, parents hope that their children will enjoy healthy childhoods filled with the joys of learning and playing; and WHEREAS, unfortunately, some children develop forms of pediatric cancer, necessitating surgery or treatments that can prove to be exhausting to the children and cause emotional distress and financial hardship for their caregivers; and WHEREAS, cancer is the leading cause of death by disease among U.S. children between infancy and age 15, and approximately 10,730 new cases of pediatric cancer were expected to be diagnosed in children from infancy to 14 years of age in 2010; and WHEREAS, the most common types of childhood cancers are leukemias, which can manifest a variety of symptoms, and brain and central nervous system tumors; these two types of cancers account for more than half of new cases of childhood cancers; and WHEREAS, childhood cancers differ from adult cancers and have different treatments, requiring attention at facilities that have experience in working with children with cancer; and WHEREAS, children who suffer from cancer face medical procedures and treatments that bring a great deal of fear and anxiety to themselves and their families; and WHEREAS, support services are available at many locations to assist children and their families as they go through the treatment process; and WHEREAS, over the past 30 years, survival rates for childhood cancers have improved dramatically; the five-year survival rate for all childhood cancers is now 80 percent while the 10-year survival rate is almost 75 percent; and WHEREAS, follow-up care is essential for children who have had cancer to ensure that they remain healthy; and WHEREAS, a month dedicated to programs and activities about pediatric cancers will greatly raise awareness and help educate Virginia's citizens about pediatric cancers and their impact on children and their families in the Commonwealth; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly designate September, in 2011 and in each succeeding year, as Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month in Virginia; and, be it RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates post the designation of this month on the General Assembly's website. |
