The U.S. Senate has unanimously passed a resolution designating Glioblastoma Awareness Day this summer. It honors the late Arizona Senator John McCain who died from the aggressive form of brain cancer in 2018. KNAU’s Ryan Heinsius reports.
The resolution declares July 21 of this year as an awareness day for the disease that kills more than 10,000 Americans each year. According to the National Brian Tumor Society, glioblastoma is one of the most complex, deadly and treatment-resistant cancers and accounts for almost half of all malignant brain tumors.
Arizona Democratic senators Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly cosponsored the bipartisan resolution with Republicans Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio, among others. It aims to bring awareness to glioblastoma treatments and urges collaboration and continued investment in brain tumor research. A companion bill has also been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.
John McCain was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2017 and died a little more than a year later after discontinuing treatment. President Joe Biden’s son, Beau, also died from the disease in 2015 as well as U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy in 2009.
