Legislation sponsored by Senator Anthony M. Bucco to fund pediatric cancer research in New Jersey has been approved by the New Jersey Senate.
Sen. Tony Bucco and Grace Eline, both pediatric cancer survivors, vote YES to fund vital pediatric cancer research in New Jersey. (SenateNJ.com)
“As a survivor of pediatric cancer, I know there are few things that can make a child feel so scared or parents so helpless,” said Bucco (R-25). “I am thankful every day that I was one of the lucky ones who survived. With better-funded research, we can improve treatments and survival rates to ensure that luck is no longer a factor in deciding which children with cancer will have an opportunity to grow up and live full lives.”
The bill, S-3724, appropriates $5 million to the New Jersey Pediatric Cancer Fund. The fund will be created through separate legislation, S-1431, which was passed by the Senate 38-0 on June 3, 2021.
The newly created fund would be managed by the New Jersey State Commission on Cancer Research. The commission would be responsible for soliciting, evaluating, and approving applications from qualifying research institutions for grants from the fund to conduct research relating to the causes, prevention, education, screening, treatment, and cure of pediatric cancer.
This year, the American Cancer Society projects that about 10,500 children in the U.S. under the age of 15 will be diagnosed with cancer. Sadly, an estimated 1,190 children are expected to die from the disease.
While cancer survival rates for children have improved significantly over the past 50 years, cancer remains the leading cause of death from disease among children.
“On Pediatric Cancer Awareness Day in February, I had the honor of joining with a group of legislators to hear the story of a brave little girl, Grace Eline, who battled and thankfully recovered from a brain tumor,” added Bucco. “While we want more success stories like Grace, we don’t want children to have to endure the process in the first place. More research is needed to help us prevent pediatric cancers before they happen and make treatments easier and more successful when needed.”
From left: Senate President Stephen Sweeney, Grace Eline, Senator Anthony Bucco, and Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean. (SenateNJ.com)
Grace and her mother testified in support of the legislation during the Health Committee meeting on May 6, 2021.
Senator Tony Bucco is currently working with Senate President Steve Sweeney to increase the funding of the New Jersey Pediatric Cancer Fund from $5 million to $10 million.