Whereas nearly 78,000 people in the United States were diagnosed with a primary brain tumor last year, and up to 170,000 more were diagnosed with metastatic brain tumors that were the result of cancer spreading from another part of the body to the brain; Whereas brain tumors are the leading cause of death from cancer in children under the age of 14, second leading cause of death from cancer for children and teens under the age of 20, and third leading cause of death from cancer in young adults ages 20 to 39; Whereas the five-year relative survival rate in the United States following diagnosis of a primary malignant brain and spinal tumor is only 34.4 percent; Whereas over 16,000 people in the United States lost their battle with a brain tumor last year; Whereas brain tumors may be either malignant or benign, but can be life-threatening in either case; Whereas nearly 700,000 people in the United States are currently living with a brain tumor; Whereas treatment of brain tumors is complicated by the fact that there are more than 120 different types of tumors; Whereas the treatment and removal of brain tumors present significant challenges because of the brain's uniquely complex and fragile nature; Whereas brain tumors affect the primary organ in the human body that not only controls cognitive ability, but the actions of every other organ and limb in the body, leading to it being described as a disease that affects the essence of self; Whereas the first resolution recognizing the need for a National Brain Tumor Awareness Month was passed by the House of Representatives on May 21, 2008; Whereas brain tumor research is supported by a number of private nonprofit research foundations and by institutes at the National Institutes of Health, including the National Cancer Institute and National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Whereas basic research advances may fuel research and development of new treatments