| |
| |
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
|
WHEREAS, Minority Cancer Awareness Month is being observed in |
|
|
Texas in April to call attention to the disparities in cancer health |
|
|
among racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Black, Native American, and Alaskan Native |
|
|
communities experience the highest cancer rates and worst outcomes |
|
|
for each of the most common types of cancer; in addition, Black |
|
|
communities are disproportionately impacted by other diseases, |
|
|
such as obesity, diabetes, and infections, making cancer treatment |
|
|
more difficult and more likely to cause severe side effects; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Cancer health disparities are worsened by some |
|
|
socioeconomic conditions; people experiencing poverty are less |
|
|
likely to enroll in clinical trials that offer improved cancer |
|
|
outcomes, and people with low income or insufficient health |
|
|
insurance may lack access to medical specialists or genetic testing |
|
|
required by clinical trials; according to data from the U.S. Census |
|
|
Bureau, Native American and Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic, and |
|
|
multiracial communities experienced the highest ratios of poverty |
|
|
compared to total population in 2021; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Many people in racial minority groups die from |
|
|
cancer due to a severe lack of matching stem cell or marrow donors |
|
|
in the worldwide registry; in the United States, 75 percent of Black |
|
|
patients, 75 percent of multiracial patients, 55 percent of Latino |
|
|
and Hispanic patients, and 60 percent of Asian American patients do |
|
|
not have a perfectly matched donor in the registry; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, More work remains to be done to ensure that all |
|
|
cancer patients have access to life-saving treatments and quality |
|
|
health care, and the observance of Minority Cancer Awareness Month |
|
|
unites Texans in their commitment to improving cancer outcomes |
|
|
among racial and ethnic minority groups; now, therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
|
|
Legislature hereby recognize April as Minority Cancer Awareness |
|
|
Month in Texas and encourage all Texans to learn more about how |
|
|
minority groups are impacted by cancer health disparities. |