National Brain Tumor Society was deeply saddened to learn of the sudden passing of Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina on Saturday evening at the age of 71.
Senator Graham led the Senate resolution establishing the first-ever Glioblastoma Awareness Day in 2019 as a way to honor and remember his friends and colleagues Senators John McCain and Ted Kennedy, who both died from glioblastoma. He championed the effort every year that followed, and in late June the Senate adopted the 2026 resolution by unanimous consent — one of his final acts on behalf of this community. We will observe this year’s eighth annual Glioblastoma Awareness Day, this Wednesday, July 15, with him very much on our minds. Without him, there would be no Glioblastoma Awareness Day.
“Glioblastoma is an aggressive brain cancer, and I have seen three members of the Senate family, Ted Kennedy, Senator Barrasso’s wife, Bobbi, and my dearest friend John McCain, lose their battle to it,” said Senator Graham in a press release marking the passage of this year’s resolution less than a month before his untimely passing. “This resolution honors my friends, all of those who have lost their battle to glioblastoma, and the strong individuals fighting this disease every day. It will create national awareness of this horrible illness and encourage medical professionals to work together to find a cure.
While a lesser-known aspect of his decades of public service, the brain tumor community will remember Senator Graham’s legacy to include providing a day, recognized by the United States Senate, when a country that has mostly never heard of this disease is asked to look at it directly.
Glioblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor in adults, and it is one of the few cancers where the statistics have barely moved in half a century. The five-year survival rate is 7%. Median survival is measured in months, not years. Glioblastoma Awareness Day provides an affirmation that national leaders understand the urgency for action to find a cure for this terrible disease. We are grateful to Senator Graham for that.
“We hope today will bring added awareness, building on the efforts of the GBM advocacy community and organizations like the National Brain Tumor Society who have dedicated so much time and energy to fighting this disease and supporting those affected by it,” Senator Graham wrote in an op-ed to support the first Glioblastoma Awareness Day in 2019. “Striving to help patients find cures and honor those who are fighting GBM, those who have lost their lives to the disease and those who have cared for their loved ones is what Glioblastoma Awareness Day is all about. We deserve to live in a world free of glioblastoma. We urge you to join us in commemorating this day of awareness.”
Glioblastoma Awareness Day will proceed this Wednesday as planned. The House companion resolution remains before Congress, as it is each year, and National Brain Tumor Society will keep working with members and staff on both sides of the Capitol to ensure this commemoration continues as it has, without fail, since the beginning, thanks to Senator Graham.
Our condolences are with Senator Graham’s family, his staff, fellow senators, and the people of South Carolina.
