On Tuesday the Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma’ (DIPG) Advocacy Group in Agua Dulce, announced that a Senate vote had taken place and had unanimously passed the 2020 DIPG Pediatric Brain Cancer Awareness Resolution, officials said.

DIPG is the second most common pediatric brain tumor and causes more children to die each year than any other brain cancer, and represents a significant portion of the annual childhood cancer death toll, said Janet Demeter, who lost her son to DIPG.

The House Resolution was first introduced by Congressman Steve Knight in 2016, and in his absence Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-CA-14) championed its re-introduction in 2019 with David Joyce (R-OH-14), according to officials.

“The experience of DIPG doesn’t lend itself to hopeful advocacy,” Demeter said. “When you are told at diagnosis that your child is going to die and there’s nothing you can do about it, and then you must witness their death in complete helplessness—not just to save them, but to adequately comfort them as their death approaches, you don’t just feel like running out and asking the world to help and to care. I was told there were no solutions for my son because his life had no value to research investors. That’s a fine how-do-you-do in the wealthiest country in the world with the best technology. It’s an unacceptable reality and I won’t stop insisting that our children matter until this changes.”

May has been traditionally Brain Tumor Awareness Month from the time of Senator Ted Kennedy’s passing and the work of brain cancer advocates, particularly the National Brain Tumor Society.

In the House of Representatives, the DIPG Awareness Resolution (H. Res. 114) with similar language raises awareness to the deadly statistics of pediatric brain cancer and the inadequacy of the medical research system and investment culture to address the urgent, unmet needs of our nation’s children afflicted with deadly pediatric disease, according to officials.

The briefing was a powerful opportunity for scientists at NIH to converse with those from Pacific Pediatric Neuro-oncology Consortium, and the Children’s Brain Tumor Tissue Consortium, America’s leading scientific organizations for pediatric neuro-oncology research and treatment, according to officials.

DIPG Advocacy Group had been anticipating this news from Senator Rubio’s office after pushing for a vote on the 2020 Resolution, as in March the Senator’s office had been less optimistic about getting the resolution on the Senate agenda amid the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The Senate passed the resolution originally in 2019, which was a huge win for the childhood brain cancer community after three introductions of the House Resolution without gaining the attention of House leadership, according to officials.

“As the virus exposes challenges in our health care system, DIPG and pediatric brain cancer expose the fact that our children have been falling through the cracks of the medical research system for decades without enough of a fight from us. If no one knows, no one cares; most all these children die, and their families are too devastated to speak out. The few of us assembled represent thousands more who cannot speak out,” Demeter said.

KHTS FM 98.1 and AM 1220 is Santa Clarita’s only local radio station. KHTS mixes in a combination of news, traffic, sports, and features along with your favorite adult contemporary hits. Santa Clarita news and features are delivered throughout the day over our airwaves, on our website and through a variety of social media platforms. Our KHTS national award-winning daily news briefs are now read daily by 34,000+ residents. A vibrant member of the Santa Clarita community, the KHTS broadcast signal reaches all of the Santa Clarita Valley and parts of the high desert communities located in the Antelope Valley. The station streams its talk shows over the web, reaching a potentially worldwide audience. Follow @KHTSRadio on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.