Last week, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., led a bipartisan resolution designating May 17, 2023, as “DIPG Pediatric Brain Cancer Awareness Day” to raise awareness of, and encourage research on DIPG tumors and pediatric cancer.

Brain tumors are the leading cause of cancer-related death among children in our nation. Unfortunately, diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is the leading cause of pediatric brain cancer deaths in this age group. The median amount of time that a child survives their diagnosis is 11 months and there has been little to no change in prognosis for children diagnosed in the past 50 years.

The Senate passed the resolution without opposition last week.

“The Senate encourages all individuals in the United States to become more informed about diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma tumors, pediatric brain cancer in general, and challenges related to research on pediatric cancer and ways to advance that research,” the resolution reads.

U.S. Sens. Jack Reed, D-RI, Mike Braun, R-Ind., Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV, Bob Casey, D-Penn., Deb Fischer, R-Neb., Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., co-sponsored the resolution.