Federal Cancer Research Funding Crisis Threatens Nation's Mortality Rate, Assert Top Cancer Researcher Patricia Berg, Ex-White House Spokesman Robert Weiner & Policy Analyst Tom Sherman

WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- George Washington University cancer researcher Dr. Patricia Berg, former White House Drug Policy Spokesman and House Aging Committee Director Robert Weiner, and Solutions for Change Senior Policy Analyst Tom Sherman, are asserting that Federal cancer research funding cuts are threatening the nation's mortality rate.  The trio wrote an article, "FUND CANCER RESEARCH TO KEEP BREAKTHROUGHS COMING," which appears in the Wednesday edition of the Baltimore Sun.

They reported that "thousands of cancer scientists — not your usual political activists — are expected to 'Rally for Medical Research' on Capitol Hill Thursday to bring attention to dwindling federal support."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman contended that "with justifications including 'sequestration,' 'shutdown,' and 'furlough,' Congress has shifted the onus of funding cancer research, education and detection away from the federal budget, and onto its own citizens." They reported that according to Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, "the agency has lost 25 percent of its purchasing power over the past decade, discouraging American scientists from innovative research."

The authors believe there is cause for alarm because, "In Maryland the stakes are particularly high: According to the CDC, cancer is currently the second leading cause of death, accounting for nearly a quarter of all deaths. CDC data shows that more than half of all counties in Maryland have populations with "high" cancer rates (over 200 incidents per 100,000 people). Furthermore, in Baltimore City, cancer deaths occur at a rate 1.3 times higher than the national average."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman provided data from the American Cancer Society and American Association for Cancer Research, which shows "national cancer mortality rates decreased by 30 percent nationwide over the past three decades."

They cited a report released by the Maryland Cigarette Restitution Fund that shows "from 2001-2010, cancer diagnoses declined about two thirds of a percent each year in the state. Mortality rates dropped almost 2 percent annually. The dramatic decline in deaths is attributed to medical technology, breakthrough cancer detection research and aggressive public outreach on early screenings."

"If Americans do not want decades of medical progression to reverse, they must urge Congress to change course quickly," they argued.

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman mentioned State Sen. C. Anthony Muse, a Prince George's County Democrat, who "spearheaded legislation for the Maryland Department of Health to investigate cancer clusters within the state and find environmental causes, such as tobacco use, weight, diet, industry or exposures to chemicals."

They pointed out that "when Senator Muse's committee reported recommendations to the state legislature earlier this year, members found that, 'collectively these environmental factors are involved to some degree in 2 of 3 (67 percent) cancers, both alone and in combination with inherited factors.'" The Muse report urges Maryland to "collaborate with academic institutions and federal agencies in order to expand prevention strategy efforts and educate at-risk populations."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman were quick to point out that "none of this can be done without funding. The current NIH disease categories spending report reveals that, as a whole, cancer-related funding has been slashed 23 percent since 2010." The trio also notes that, "As the NIH works with functional budget levels akin to Fiscal Year 2008, the agency is forced to balance limited resources with the costs of staying at the cutting edge of world-class scientific research."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman cited the "quagmire" current federal funding is caught in, relaying that, "during a debate on the House floor last spring, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said reductions to the National Institutes of Health and other institutions with innovative genomics and cancer research programs, such as Johns Hopkins University, is a 'stupid, harmful, future-hurting and America under-cutting policy.'"

The authors concurred that "long-term cancer research is vital."  They related that "a research team at the George Washington University Berg Laboratory discovered that a gene, known as BP1, is activated in 80 percent of breast cancer incidents. The team also found that the gene is activated in 70 percent of prostate cancer tumors, as well as in 63 percent of acute myeloid leukemia cases. Other researchers have found the gene highly activated in lung and ovarian cancer. Without sustained support, current knowledge of the BP1 gene would be non-existent."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman quoted Hillary Clinton, who "called the discovery an 'exciting' area of research."  If this gene appears in so many different kinds of cancers, learning how to suppress it will be immensely useful," she said, noting that two areas of research "already show promise."

The writers urged continued support for scientists, noting, "Victories in cancer research are not reason to abandon the support that caused them."

They referenced NIH director Dr. Collins, who said, "We are throwing away probably half of the innovative, talented research proposals that the nation's finest biomedical community has produced."

Berg, Weiner, and Sherman concluded, "The U.S. must not allow cancer to regain a stranglehold and outsource scientific research leadership to other countries. Rather than declaring past falling death rates as good enough, Congress should act aggressively and recommission the fight to eradicate the disease."

Dr. Patricia Berg is professor of biochemistry and molecular medicine at GWU Medical Center and directs the breast cancer laboratory. Robert Weiner is former White House Office of National Drug Policy spokesman and chief of staff of the House Committee on Aging and Subcommittee on Health. Tom Sherman is senior policy analyst for Solutions for Change Foundation.

Contact: Robert Weiner 301-283-0821, cell 202-306-1200 [email protected]

SOURCE Robert Weiner Associates