Van Hollen Announces Full Funding for Implementation of the Childhood Cancer STAR Act

U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen has announced that the Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research (STAR) Act will be fully funded at authorized levels for the first time since it became law earlier this month. Senator Van Hollen was an original co-sponsor of the law and pushed for its passage.

 

Additionally, as part of a historic $2 billion increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Senator Van Hollen secured $30 million for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) campus in Frederick, Maryland. This is part of a total of $6.15 billion for NCI, which is an increase of $182.3 million above Fiscal Year 2018. The funding is included in the Fiscal Year 2019 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which passed the Committee on Thursday with broad bipartisan support.

 

The STAR Act will advance NCI’s pediatric cancer research and child-focused cancer treatments, while also improving childhood cancer surveillance through an additional $2 million at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and providing resources for survivors and those impacted by childhood cancer. NCI estimates that nationwide 10,380 children and adolescents up to 14 years of age were diagnosed with cancer within the last year, and 1,250 will die of the disease.

 

“I’ve met with countless families in Maryland who have faced the nightmare of a child with cancer – and while their stories are all different, all of the mothers, fathers, and kids I’ve talked to are looking for hope,” said Senator Van Hollen. “This funding will help give them that hope as we move forward with expanded research and better treatments. Maryland is proud to be home to both NIH and NCI, and this investment will help them ultimately save lives.”