Comments on: Are We Retreating In The War On Cancer?

Research Money Is Down, And Scientists Are Leaving In Droves

[talkingham]

mburch u really don''t have a clue do you? private industry will not make the investments on investigating cures for diseases until a relatively low-paid university professor and his low-pay crew of student researchers working on $20K a year stipends lays the groundwork. the govt itself does very little research except through funding grants to universities. I agree that many professors are little more than parasites in system but thankfully enough of them are truly dedicated to research and education and they are the ones making the discoveries. not the Pzfizers of the world. so, it''s a synergistic scenario where industry, govt and education overlap in ways that can ultimately produce results not your lousy "free market" approach to science.

[mbburch06]

The fundamental flaw of this article is the assumption that all research funds must be stolen from taxpayers: if government doesn''t do it, no one will.

There is PLENTY of reason for private companies to fund cancer research. Imagine the TRILLIONS that Pfizer or GSK could make if they found a cure. The difference is that government will throw money at anything that moves (most of it ends up wasted) while the private sector is more cautious and only funds projects that have a reasonable chance of success.

Here''''s a novel idea: get government out of the way and let these companies fund their own research.

[mbburch06]

The fundamental flaw of this article is the assumption that all research funds that have been stolen from taxpayers. There is PLENTY of reason for private companies to fund cancer research. Imagine the TRILLIONS that Pfizer or GSK could make if they found a cure. The difference is that government will throw money at anything that moves (most of it ends up wasted) while the private sector is more cautious and only funds projects that have a reasonable chance of success.

Here''s a novel idea: get government out of the way and let these companies fund their own research.

[Netterz]

Corp America is what is keeping America off the cutting edge. Why? because there is NO $$$$$ in a cure, but there is a HUGE CASH COW in ''treatment''. Multi billion $$ facilities are goin up on every corner you see, for ''treatment'' So why would they even look, as long as they are lining there front pockets with ''treatment'' $$$ and have all the politicians they can buy lining there back pockets that halt funding? I have cancer, been in ''treatment'' for over a year now. Corp America spends all its time buying up politicians and doctors. They dont want a cure found, because that puts them out of business. Especially when the most common treatment, being Chemo, is nothing more than a basic form of rat posion, taken from posionous plants.

[forparity]

Perhaps,you missed a bit that has been shifted elsewhere,which if you were not such a biased little partisan, you would be pumping the news up once or twice a month;because it''s something you claim you care about.

That would be Pres Bush''s concern over the Global Aids pandemic, he inherited from an uncaring and unwilling Pres. Clinton; Bush''s leadership with his twin HIV/Aids&Malaria programs for Africa & Indonesia. Since he became leader of the caring world topped $22 billion. See: Total US contrib to Global Aids 2001-2008; with most understanding that his efforts have easily saved over a million lives, prevented infections of millions more,and will result millions more less lives lost. Imagine the effect, alone, of the 1.9 billion condoms alone that he has distributed in 3rd world countries - a small part of the effort. Oh, right, you thought he put a hold on distributing condoms-most of the left wants to believe that spin.

A refresher on how your dear Bill Clinton performed as pres on the issue,read Corn''s(The Nation),Too little,too late-How many times is Clinton to apologize to Africa?http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/13632]

Also, Bush''s concern about the suffering and deaths caused by Malaria resulted in massive effort, with remarkable results. See: The President''s Malaria Initiative and U.S. Efforts to Fight Malaria.

The nation is moving forward in the world, Katie, and we''re doing it without you. [http://www.data.org/issues/governmentFunding_for_Malaria.html]

[elkc]

Get real! There is no money for cancer research because we are loosing the American-Iraq War. Every penny intended for health research, continued education, gang violence intervention, border control, reducing drugs in schools and neighborhoods,-America in general. All proceeds are funding Iraq. America can''t fight a battle at the expense of the Iraq war and remain on the cutting edge in anything. We got attacked by republicans in the year 2000 and that%u2019s where we remain. Better leadership could be found on a raw talent show on a really bad TV show. But the Gong Show is out of business, just like construction workers, auto industry workers, hell even the mob! You can%u2019t fund funding when your funds are funding surges, urges and Halliburton%u2019s Iraq.
By the way the funding for the presidents daughters wedding was terrible!

[cpaide]

why do you assume there is a cure? maybe cancer is a beneficial part of nature. it''s about to rid us of teddy kennedy, isn''t it?

[forparity]

If, of course, it had been Jimmy Carter or JFK, who had led on this historic effort, Couric would have led off with something positive about their legacy here:

National Cancer Act of 1971 {http://dtp.nci.nih.gov/timeline/noflash/milestones/M4_Nixon.htm}

"In 1970, the American people made clear their desire for a cure for the second-leading cause of death in the United States. President Nixon responded during his January 1971 State of the Union address: "I will also ask for an appropriation of an extra $100 million to launch an intensive campaign to find a cure for cancer, and I will ask later for whatever additional funds can effectively be used. The time has come in America when the same kind of concentrated effort that split the atom and took man to the moon should be turned toward conquering this dread disease. Let us make a total national commitment to achieve this goal."

And we did:

"On December 23, 1971, President Nixon followed through on his promise as he signed the National Cancer Act into law."

We''ve come a long way - without you, Katie.

[talkingham]

For more than 30 years the "leading" cardiologists were suggesting that you get off that nasty natural food butter and clog your heart with wonderful hydrogen-injected rancid corn oil - really great for the heart!

Along with the trans fats that the health and nutrition industry did nothing about for 30 years you can throw in the rest of the rancid vegetable oils that the "nutrition" and "edible" oils industry cram into every cookie and potato chip u eat, the toxic acids used to "unsweeten" the insanely sweet artificial sweeteners in your "diet" drink and the loads of corn syrup in everything else u buy.

The whole "low" fat conspiracy has been little more than a giant marketing farce now for more than 30 years and cancer & heart disease are killing more than ever. You would think that 30 years of low fats would make a diff right?

Well, it''s been shown by researchers not bought off by the food industry that the so-called poly unsaturated oils are a disaster for the immune system. In fact, the whole high-cholestoral issue is little more than a farce. Do a search on the Weston A. Price Foundation where you can learn more about the researcher, Dr. Mary Enig who blew the whistle on trans fats back in the early ''80''s but had her testimony stricken from the Congressional record by the edible oils industry controlled committees in Congress. It''s hard to accept I suppose that much of what they sell us is poison but perhaps it''s worth thinking about.

[beeasyonme]

Do you know how many people would be out of work if a cure for cancer was found? It''s a crying shame, but I believe it simply won''t be allowed to happen.