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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, Modern medicine has made amazing advances in
3 fighting pediatric cancer; pediatric cancer survivors are
4 faced with a unique set of problems because of these advances;
5 and
 
6     WHEREAS, Cure rates for pediatric cancers have risen
7 dramatically during the past 20 years, and it is estimated that
8 one in every 900 adults, aged 16 to 44, is a survivor of
9 pediatric cancer; and
 
10     WHEREAS, Almost 70 percent of children diagnosed with brain
11 cancer survive treatment today, a statistic that calls into
12 focus the need to look at a child's quality of life in the
13 years following treatment; and
 
14     WHEREAS, Pediatric cancer survivorship can come with a
15 price in the form of long-term medical, financial,
16 psychosocial, and/or neurocognitive problems due to
17 chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery; and
 
18     WHEREAS, The major expenses of a pediatric cancer diagnosis
19 and treatment are associated with the direct costs of medical
20 care, including charges for hospitalizations, clinic visits,
21 medications, tests and procedures, home health services,

 

 

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1 services of doctors and other professionals, and treatment
2 including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and bone
3 marrow or peripheral stem cell transplant; and
 
4     WHEREAS, Even well-insured, middle-class families with
5 health insurance can find themselves in financial distress
6 because of a single catastrophic illness, and even when
7 insurance doesn't run out, health care costs can be staggering
8 for the families of children with cancer; and
 
9     WHEREAS, The State of Illinois recognizes that amazing
10 advances have been made in the treatment of pediatric cancer
11 and survivor rates; therefore, be it
 
12     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
13 NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
14 proclaim April 6-12, 2008 as the Second Annual Pediatric Cancer
15 Survivorship Week in the State of Illinois.