HB 9023

1	House Resolution
2	A resolution declaring the month of March 2004 as
3	Endometriosis Awareness Month.
4
5	WHEREAS, endometriosis, a condition involving abnormal
6	uterine cell growth, affects more women than does breast cancer,
7	striking more than 5.5 million teens and women in the United
8	States alone and nearly 70 million worldwide, and
9	WHEREAS, studies have shown an elevated risk of certain
10	cancers and autoimmune diseases in endometriosis patients, and
11	endometriosis is a leading cause of female infertility and
12	hysterectomy, and
13	WHEREAS, endometriosis may have a debilitating impact on a
14	woman's life and her relationships, in some cases rendering her
15	unable to work, to care for herself or her family, or to go about
16	her normal routines, and
17	WHEREAS, there is currently no definitive cure for
18	endometriosis, and
19	WHEREAS, the Endometriosis Research Center (ERC) is a
20	nonprofit organization founded in 1997 to address the needs of
21	the international community of individuals who suffer from
22	endometriosis and to improve the quality of life for those with
23	the disease through education and support programs, and
24	WHEREAS, the Endometriosis Research Center works to raise
25	awareness about endometriosis throughout the medical and lay
26	communities and raises funds to facilitate and promote existing
27	research for effective treatments and, ultimately, a cure for the
28	disease, and
29	WHEREAS, in observance of the anniversary of the
30	Endometriosis Research Center, events and activities, including
31	"ERC Casual Days," are held annually during the month of March in
32	an effort to educate the general public about the significance of
33	this disease, to support and assist women living with the
34	disease, and to raise funds for the organization's efforts, NOW,
35	THEREFORE,
36
37	Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of
38	Florida:
39
40	That the House of Representatives pauses in its deliberations to
41	recognize the worthy efforts of the Endometriosis Research
42	Center and to declare March 2004 as Endometriosis Awareness
43	Month.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.