|
| | HR0359 | | LRB104 13253 ECR 25448 r |
|
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
|
| 2 | | WHEREAS, There is a need for statewide awareness of |
| 3 | | Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) disease and the suffering it |
| 4 | | causes individuals and communities that bear witness to its |
| 5 | | effects; and
|
| 6 | | WHEREAS, FTD is an underdiagnosed neurodegenerative |
| 7 | | disease that affects more than 60,000 people in the United |
| 8 | | States; the disease is typically found in people aged 21 to 80, |
| 9 | | with the largest percentage of people affecting being under |
| 10 | | the age of 65; and
|
| 11 | | WHEREAS, FTD can impact behavior, decision-making, |
| 12 | | personality, language, and/or movement, and the disease has an |
| 13 | | average life expectancy of seven to 13 years after diagnosis; |
| 14 | | and
|
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Due to FTD's low estimated prevalence in the |
| 16 | | U.S., many members of the medical community remain unfamiliar |
| 17 | | with the disease; and
|
| 18 | | WHEREAS, FTD is frequently misdiagnosed as Alzheimer's |
| 19 | | disease, Parkinson's disease, or a psychiatric condition, such |
| 20 | | as depression, and it takes a FTD patient about 3.6 years, on |
| 21 | | average, to get an accurate diagnosis; and
|
|
| | HR0359 | - 2 - | LRB104 13253 ECR 25448 r |
|
|
| 1 | | WHEREAS, There is currently no cure or treatment available |
| 2 | | to slow the progress of FTD; and
|
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Kara Kirby was diagnosed with a behavioral |
| 4 | | variant of FTD at the age of 29, and she was checked into the |
| 5 | | Mayo Clinic because no medical expert in her area could |
| 6 | | diagnosis her; she was cared for by her parents until this |
| 7 | | progressive, incurable disease took her life on New Year's Day |
| 8 | | in 2023 at the young age of 33; and
|
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Kara Kirby's story reminds us all of the need for |
| 10 | | awareness and support for a disease that is largely |
| 11 | | misunderstood, misdiagnosed, and underfunded; and
|
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Establishing a FTD Awareness Week will help |
| 13 | | increase understanding and support for this deadly disease; |
| 14 | | and
|
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Similar efforts are underway in other states |
| 16 | | across the country, including Maryland, Ohio, Oklahoma, |
| 17 | | Tennessee, and West Virginia; therefore, be it
|
| 18 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE |
| 19 | | HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that |
| 20 | | we declare September 21 through September 28, 2025 as FTD |