Recognizing Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

Floor Speech

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Mr. SORENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge one of the most cherished organizations in my district and the efforts to continue their storied mission of serving with the greatest care and love. As we know, September is childhood cancer awareness month, so please join me in recognizing OSF HealthCare and their newly named OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois Cancer and Blood Disorders Institute.

This is an incredible milestone for pediatric healthcare in downstate Illinois. Located in Peoria, the institute cares for children with both cancer and blood disorders through world-class, family-centered care.

The OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois is the sole children's hospital in the downstate area that offers the full spectrum of pediatric oncology and hematology care under one roof for children and their families. These services include one of approximately 45 proton beam therapy centers in the United States and the only one serving downstate Illinois families. This allows for highly targeted radiation treatments which reduce side effects and improve long term outcomes for children.

In addition to treating childhood cancers, the hospital is a regional leader in the care of serious blood disorders such as sickle cell disease, hemophilia, and aplastic anemia. Their comprehensive programs cover major steps for care, including diagnosis, treatment, lifelong management, and transition to adult care, thus ensuring every patient receives the treatment they need at every stage of life.

Every year, approximately 15,000 children in the United States, 700 in Illinois, are diagnosed with cancer, and countless others live with chronic or life-threatening blood disorders. This includes children as young as only a few months. While we are thankful that survival rates for many pediatric cancers have improved to over 85 percent, cancer remains the leading cause of disease-related death among children, and hematologic conditions continue to require complex, coordinated, and long-term care.

To unite our community in this fight, OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois has also recently launched Paint the Town Gold, an annual community-wide awareness initiative that will take place every September during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Now an annual downstate tradition, Paint the Town Gold brings together businesses, schools, local governments, and citizens to honor children, inspire hope, and advocate for continued progress in both cancer and blood disorder care.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to urge the chamber to join me in congratulating OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois Cancer and Blood Disorders Institute on their new name, while applauding their leadership in pediatric cancer and blood disorder care. Likewise, I am happy to recognize Paint the Town Gold as an enduring community tradition in the fight for every child's health.

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