Henry T. Gage Middle School student Cynthia Cervantes of Huntington Park presents Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34) with a plaque of appreciation on behalf of the Scleroderma Foundation for her support of federal research efforts into the disease that causes Cynthia’s skin and internal organs to stiffen. The congresswoman first met 13-year-old Cynthia in March when she testified before the Appropriations Health Subcommittee, on which the congresswoman sits, about her experiences coping with scleroderma. The rare autoimmune disease affects about 300,000 Americans.  

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