Thursday, February 15, 2007

Priorities:

Due to federal budget constraints some 3000 patients could possibly be prevented from taking part in cancer trials nationwide, according to Robert L. Comis, president of the Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups....

The budget cutbacks will affect trials for all cancers, but especially those studying sarcomas, and head and neck cancers.

The Southwest Oncology Group will halt all sarcoma, and head and neck trials. The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group will eliminate its brain and sarcoma trials. Many other groups will delay various late stage cancer trials, thus, pushing back possible new treatments for needy patients.

These recent setbacks are especially hard to swallow considering that many positive trends have materialized over the last couple of years, including the decline of cancer death rates, and the re-thinking of cancer as a chronic condition, rather than a terminal illness....


Enjoy those tax cuts!

(You can also watch this report that was broadcast on ABC tonight on the same subject.)

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