As printed in the Austin-American Statesman

(Washington D.C.)- Everyday you read newspapers like this one. These pages are filled with facts and figures concerning current events. However, as we read about these important issues, we cannot forget the news that doesn't make the headlines. Tim and Donna Culliver understand what I am talking about.

Their 4-year-old son Adam became ill on Jan. 16, 2003. After waking from an afternoon nap he found his mom, Donna, in the kitchen of their Brenham home. He was rubbing his eyes and saying they burned and hurt. His right eye was swollen. He started screaming, crying that he couldn't see. His gums were swollen and bleeding. About two hours after they arrived in the local emergency room, the Cullivers were told Adam had leukemia and would have to be rushed to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. By 8:30 p.m., he was in an ambulance. By 9:15 p.m., his tiny head had swollen to about three times its normal size. Doctors explained Adam had a rare form of the disease called acute myelogenous leukemia. The only thing his parents could do was sign life support papers. On the morning of Jan. 20, Tim and Donna Culliver took their 4-year-old son off life support.

Cancer kills more children than any other disease. We in Congress have a responsibility to help families like the Cullivers. More importantly, we have a responsibility to little boys and girls like Adam.

According to CureSearch, each year in the United States, an estimated 12,500 children and adolescents are expected to hear they have cancer. More than 2,300 children die from cancer each year.

Last session, I co-introduced the Conquer Childhood Cancer Act of 2006. It would have authorized funding to support research, which would translate into advances to treat childhood cancer. The bill provided children facing a cancer diagnosis hope for a lifetime ahead.

Unfortunately, the bill was not considered by the House last year. But we have another chance.

I plan to reintroduce this legislation and work with the new Democratic leadership to pass this vital bill. The federal government has the chance to: fund biomedical research programs aimed at curing and preventing pediatric cancers; support a national childhood cancer database enabling researchers to study children with cancer; identify cancer causes and aid in the development of prevention strategies; and foster clinical research for pediatric oncologists to help ensure that families affected by childhood cancer gain access to the best available therapies. Under-funding this research delays the goal of finding a cure.

In the Congress, we are obligated to prioritize our investments at the federal level. I can think of no greater priority than our children. Congress must put the power of the federal government behind helping kids like Adam. No parent should ever have to bury a child as a result of this disease, and no one — especially a child — should ever have to suffer as Adam did.