Chairmen's Biographies

Congressman Michael T. McCaul, co-chair and founder of the Childhood Cancer Caucus, is currently serving his fourth term representing Texas' 10th District in the United States Congress. The 10th Congressional District of Texas stretches from Austin to the Houston suburbs, and includes Austin, Bastrop, Burleson, Harris, Lee, Travis, Washington and Waller Counties.

Congressman McCaul formed the bipartisan Childhood Cancer Caucus with former Congressman Joe Sestak, whose daughter, Alex, is a childhood cancer survivor.  For Congressman McCaul, his passion for fighting pediatric cancer started at an early age when he lost a childhood friend to leukemia.  Shortly after being elected to Congress, Congressman McCaul was introduced to constituents in his district who lost their own children to cancer.  As a parent of five children, Congressman McCaul felt compelled to use his position in the Congress to raise awareness about childhood cancer, advocate in supporting measures which will improve the lives of patients, and work toward eliminating childhood cancer as a threat to all children.

COMMITTEES AND CAUCUSES
Congressman McCaul is a member of the House Committees on Homeland Security, Foreign Affairs, Science, Space and Technology, and Ethics.  He is also founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional High Technology Caucus, Green Schools Caucus, Congressional Cyber Security Caucus, and the Sudan Caucus.

PERSONAL
Prior to coming to Congress, Michael McCaul served as Chief of Counter Terrorism and National Security in the U.S. Attorney’s office in Texas, and led the Joint Terrorism Task Force charged with detecting, deterring and preventing terrorist activity. Congressman McCaul also served as Texas Deputy Attorney General under current U.S. Senator John Cornyn, and served as a federal prosecutor in the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section in Washington, D.C.  A fourth generation Texan, Congressman McCaul earned a B.A. in Business and History from Trinity University and holds a J.D. from St. Mary's University School of Law. In 2009 Congressman McCaul was honored with St. Mary's Distinguished Graduate award.  He is also a graduate of the Senior Executive Fellows Program of the School of Government, Harvard University.  Congressman McCaul is married to his wife, Linda, who is the Chair of the Pediatric Cancer Committee at M.D. Anderson Cancer Treatment and Research Center in Houston.  They are proud parents of five children: Caroline, Jewell, and the triplets Lauren, Michael and Avery.

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As co-chair of the Childhood Cancer Caucus, Congressman Chris Van Hollen has been a tireless advocate for the thousands of children, adolescents, and young adults diagnosed with pediatric cancer and their families.  He co-authored the landmark Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act and played an integral role in its enactment into law in 2008.  Congressman Van Hollen, whose district includes the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has been a leader in the charge for federal investment in biomedical research that will lead to new, improved treatments and hopefully a cure for childhood cancer.

Congressman Van Hollen was elected to Congress in 2002 in a high-profile election that received national attention. He quickly earned a reputation as an active, engaged, and effective member of Congress, rising to become one of the youngest members of the Democratic leadership in 2008. In addition to representing the Eighth District of Maryland and serving in House leadership, Congressman Van Hollen was elected by his colleagues in 2010 to serve as the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee.

Throughout his career, Congressman Van Hollen has been a champion of education, energy, the environment, health care, and civil rights. He is a leader on cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay, and fought successfully to obtain a historic boost in federal funds for the Bay as part of the Farm Bill and to secure provisions in the Recovery Act that provided loan guarantees for renewable energy projects. He also played an integral role in the effort to pass comprehensive health care reform and fought to ensure that young adults receive expanded access to health insurance. He has been a staunch advocate for critical government reforms. He led the fight to pass far-reaching lobbying disclosure reform and has been a key supporter of whistleblower protections. A former professional staff member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Congressman Van Hollen has a strong background in national security policy. He lived and studied abroad in South Asia and has remained active in issues related to U.S. foreign policy in that region and around the world.

Before his election to the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Van Hollen served 4 years in the Maryland House of Delegates and 8 years in the Maryland Senate. His legislative record in Annapolis earned him the praise of The Washington Post, which called him “one of the most effective members of the Maryland legislature.” He is a graduate of Swarthmore College, the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and Georgetown University Law Center. He lives in Kensington, Maryland with his wife, Katherine, and their three children, Anna, Nicholas, and Alexander.