Facebook opens by asking, "What's on your mind?"
Cancer is on my mind. I had a dear friend and pillar of the community here die from pancreatic cancer less than 2 years ago. My cousin, whom I dearly love, has just been diagnosed with the same disease -- Stage 4. I had prostate cancer. My best friend here had the same disease. I benefited from prior research on the condition, and excellent treatment at the UW Medical Center, which receives substantial government funding through NIH, the National Science Foundation, and other federal grants for research. This funding is crucial for supporting research initiatives, training future researchers, and providing advanced medical care, like that I received almost twenty tears ago.
About 1,200 jobs are expected to be cut at NIH as part of the layoffs at the Health and Human Services Department, and the administration also has canceled hundreds of NIH grants to scientists around the country. HHS is expected to lose about 20,000 people.
 |
| National Institutes of Health main research campus |
"HHS deals with Americans from birth to death. There is absolutely no way you can lose 25% of the workforce without directly affecting Americans across this country," former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said, adding this includes "research and science at NIH, which is the gold standard of the world."
Anjee Davis, the CEO of Fight Colorectal Cancer, a patient advocacy group, told CBS News her reaction to the cuts was fear.
The University of Maryland has more than 250 active clinical trials, many that bring experimental medications to cancer patients across the country — but these trials are at risk of disruption.
Despite improvements in research and treatments, cancer is still the second leading cause of death in the country, highlighting the importance of continued research (Heart disease is the leading cause of death).
The Trump Administration, with Elon Musk [a man who can afford the best medical treatment anywhere in the world] leading the charge, is gleefully taking a chain saw to medical research and funding. Meanwhile the man who heads of HHS, Robert Kennedy, Jr., is attacking fluoride in public drinking water.
Someone you love, a friend, an acquaintance, a valued member of the community, will be impacted. Friends, loved ones, neighbors, will suffer and die because of ignorance, incompetence, inhumanity, and mendacity in a federal government led by Donald Trump, enabled by his cadre of sycophants.
Make sure you tell your representatives and senators how you fell about this. Carry a sign at the next protest you attend that says, "STOP KILLING US!"
