Posted by Cancer research has long been synonymous with hope for individuals dealing with cancer and their families. But research is also much more. It is what moves us forward toward a better future.
Most of us have been affected by cancer, whether through our own experience or that of a family member or close friend. That may be why a recent survey found that over 90 percent of respondents across the political spectrum said it was important that Congress assign a higher priority to ensuring faster medical progress.
Having a personal history of breast cancer, I know that I have benefited tremendously from research conducted over decades and the improved treatments that resulted from that research.
And progress continues in exciting new directions. For example, we are starting to see cancer treatments that are better targeted at the cancer and have fewer side effects. As another example, immunotherapy is now helping to improve outcomes across a wide range of cancer types, including breast cancer.
Given both the progress and the potential, why would we drastically cut funding for cancer research? Yet, incredibly, the budget currently being considered by Congress would do just that. As proposed, funding for the National Cancer Institute would be cut from its current level in 2025 of $7.2 billion to $4.45 billion, a decline of 38 percent.
Impact of Proposed Research Cuts
The National Institutes of Health (and the National Cancer Institute within it) has long been an essential funder of basic research. Much of the research that NCI supports, typically through grants for studies that are carried out at universities around the country, is basic research. This is research that private industry may consider too risky, but that is critical to moving the bar forward in the field.
NIH has already been hit with substantial staffing cuts this year, which gives us an indication of what will only get worse if we continue down this path. As a result of the firing of specialized staff members, clinical trials of customized cell therapies for metastatic cancer patients are being delayed for months. These are patients who simply can’t afford to wait. And progress on some of the most promising new cancer therapies has been stalled.
What We Can Do
Let’s get our national budget back in line with what most of us want. It is crucial that we contact our representatives in Congress and urge them to reject cuts to the NIH/NCI budget. Congress can surely find better ways to balance the budget than by gutting cancer research and jeopardizing the chances for continued progress in saving lives.
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Photo Credit: National Cancer Institute via Unsplash
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