2018 -- H 8041

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LC005352

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2018

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

RECOGNIZING MAY 21, 2018, AS "DIPG AWARENESS DAY" IN THE STATE OF RHODE

ISLAND

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Giarrusso, McNamara, Shekarchi, Morgan, and Roberts

     Date Introduced: April 03, 2018

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG) is the leading cause of childhood

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death due to brain tumors and impacts between 200 to 400 children each year in the United

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States; and

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     WHEREAS, DIPG typically strikes children between the ages of four and eleven years

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old; and

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     WHEREAS, DIPG is the deadliest childhood brain tumor, with a median survival rate

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from the time of diagnosis of only 9 months, and a near zero percent survival rate overall; and

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     WHEREAS, Because of its location in the brainstem where all motor activity is

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controlled, DIPG is inoperable. The disease progresses by taking over a child’s motor functions

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one-by-one, typically starting with vision and balance problems, before moving to partial

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paralysis, followed by the inability to chew, speak, swallow, move and eventually breathe – all of

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this while the child remains mentally intact; and

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     WHEREAS, For more than 40 years, treatment for DIPG remained the same and the

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prognosis for children diagnosed with this deadly disease did not improve. But in the past few

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years, due to better medical technology and increased access to tumor tissue, researchers have

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made real advances in their understanding of this disease; and

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     WHEREAS, There is finally hope for progress in finding a cure - by raising awareness,

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supporting expanded research, developing effective treatments, and providing comprehensive

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care for children with DIPG and their families; now, therefore be it

 

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

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Providence Plantations hereby recognizes May 21, 2018, as "DIPG Awareness Day" and

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encourages all Rhode Islanders to become more informed about diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma

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(DIPG) pediatric brain cancer, and moreover urges the National Cancer Institute and other

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research funders to elevate their consideration in designating sufficient research funding for

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pediatric cancers; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Wendy and Dean Fachon, and the Rhode Island

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Congressional Delegation.

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