Friends of Cancer Research Newsletter

This coming June, Friends of Cancer Research will begin celebrating a decade of raising awareness and furthering the nation’s progress in cancer research.

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NIH Funding Update

House Continues Negotiating FY 2007 Budget Resolution—Appropriations Committee Begins Annual Process

The House Leadership is still working to try to settle differences on the House version of a fiscal year (FY) 2007 Budget Resolution. Since returning from the April Congressional recess nearly two weeks ago, House Republicans have been negotiating several issues on the budget resolution, including the levels of funding for domestic discretionary programs. Representative Mike Castle (R-DE) as well as several other moderate Republicans have been pushing for an amendment to the House Budget Resolution similar to the amendment that Senators Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) championed in the Senate.

The Senate overwhelmingly approved the Specter-Harkin Amendment in March. The amendment restores the cuts offered in President George W. Bush’s proposed FY 2007 Budget by providing an additional $7 billion over the President's budget request, allowing Congress to fund the FY 2007 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education bill at the level enacted in FY 2005. The additional $7 billion in the Senate Budget Resolution would be used to support funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as well as other critical health and education programs. This amendment has a significant amount of support among House Republicans and is causing tension between House moderates and conservatives as they work to enact a FY 2007 Budget Resolution.

During these complex negotiations, conservative House Republicans have signaled that they will not support a House Budget Plan that includes more than the $873 billion in discretionary spending that President George W. Bush offered in his FY 2007 Budget Blueprint. If the House approves a budget along the lines of President Bush’s plan, it becomes extremely difficult to reconcile the House version with the Senate Budget that includes an additional $16 billion in discretionary spending.

With the House budget resolution debate stalled, House appropriators began to move forward with the annual appropriations process. The House Appropriations Committee is using the President’s discretionary budget level of $873 billion as an overall cap in setting the federal spending amounts for their FY 2007 process, until the debate on the budget resolution is resolved. The House is striving to approve all its appropriations bills by the July 4th recess, with mark-up of individual appropriations bills beginning in early May.

If you have questions, or need more information, please contact FOCR Director of Government Affairs Jeff Coughlin at (202) 944-6643 or jcoughlin@focr.org.

While the work we do at Friends of Cancer Research ultimately benefits the patient, our day to day work usually operates on a policy level that is somewhat removed from the daily lives of cancer patients. However, from time to time we come across a story that brings us back to the very basic reason all of us in the cancer community come to work everyday day: to stop pain and suffering due to cancer. We would like to share one story with you:

Jason is an eleven year old from California. His mother, Julie, went in for a routine colonoscopy to find out to her horror that the results were not so routine; she had rectal cancer. Fortunately, she is on her way to recovery, but throughout her treatment she sent weekly emails to friends and family to keep everyone updated. It was in one such email that she shared a poem that her eleven year old son, Jason, wrote about his mother’s cancer – it is called “The Monster.”

"THE MONSTER"
by Jason, Age 11

It's a sneaky, creepy, evil, freaky monster, It kills many like a quick human slashing you with a knife, others survive the treacherous thing although suffer and fear fright.

You don't say the word 'Ouch'

when it strikes,

it's a hard going process

with days and nights,

You are in hospitals for days

with this monster in you all the way,

for it's a hard, massive attack

or a long but recoverable nap

Some call it disease,

or some just call it death,

I think it's both,

I also think it's part of life

It's causing us a lot of pain,

so Cancer won't you go.

Copyright by permission of author only

FRIENDS UPDATE

Boston Globe Publishes Letter to the Editor from Friends Chair Dr. Ellen Sigal

On May 2^nd The Boston Globe published a letter to the editor from Friends Chair Dr. Ellen Sigal [Link to Letter on Boston.com] or [Link to letter to the editor pdf]. Dr. Sigal’s letter was in response to an April 25th editorial that called for increased FDA authority to mandate post market studies [link to editorial]. However, the editorial did not fully acknowledge the needs of the patient. The editorial followed the release of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that reviewed FDA’s handling of drug safety. In regards to this important matter, Friends is in the process of convening a Benefit-Risk Working Group of expert academic advisors to address concerns specific to the cancer community and formulate recommendations for improvement.

LINK TO GAO REPORT:

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d06402.pdf

Friends Chair Presents Advocacy Perspective on Benefit-Risk Assessment

On May 1, 2006 Dr. Ellen Sigal presented at the PhRMA 2006 Scientific and Regulatory Affairs Annual Meeting, which featured top FDA officials and leading representatives from both academia and industry. With a theme of Putting Patients First – Optimizing Benefit-Risk Decision-Making, the conference brought together diverse stakeholders to discuss and improve benefit-risk assessment and communication. Dr. Sigal’s presentation provided an advocacy perspective and stressed the importance that benefit-risk decisions are made ultimately between the patient and care-provider. She also emphasized the importance of public education, the influence of the media, and the impact of Congress.

Friends participates in Windhover Conference Series on Drug Approval Processes

On April 20, 2006 Dr. Jeff Allen, Science Policy Analyst, participated in a Windhover conference series entitled Analyzing the State of Cancer Drug Reviews and Approvals at FDA. The conference focused on the difficulties faced during the drug approval process in the current climate at FDA. Dr. Allen addressed the scientific opportunities relating to cancer drug development and the current state of drug safety assessment, as well as how such issues will impact patients. Also participating in the conference was Ramsey Baghdadi, managing editor of the RPM Report.

Friends participates in Birdies for Charity

This year, Friends of Cancer Research is participating in Birdies for Charity, the official fundraising program of the Booz Allen Classic PGA Tour Golf Tournament. Birdies for Charity enables Metropolitan Washington DC area nonprofit organizations to receive 100% of the proceeds (with the exception of credit card fees) raised by pledge money, so your donation goes directly to Friends and will be put to use in our programs.

To make a pledge to Friends of Cancer Research through Birdies for Charity, visit Booz Allen Classic: Birdies for Charity and select your pledge amount — 1¢, 2¢, 3¢, a nickel, a dime, or more for every birdie scored. With an average1,600 birdies scored, a 2¢ pledge would be about a $32.00 donation, 3¢ about $48.00 donation, etc.

Friends of Cancer Research would like to thank former Executive Director, Dr. Alan Balch, for all of his contributions and wish him the best of luck in his new position as Vice President of the Preventive Health Partnership between American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, and American Heart Association.

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