Cancer Research at a Crossroads: AACR Efforts to Defend Science and Protect Patients
From the Administration’s abrupt and indiscriminate dismissals of dedicated public servants at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to their proposed major cuts to leading research institutions and cancer centers across the United States, to their more recent efforts to slash the NIH budget by nearly 40 percent, the cancer research community has been under attack. The AACR has led efforts to defend the NIH and sustain the remarkable progress that has been made against cancer over the past 50 years as a result of federally-funded cancer science and medicine.
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On February 18, the AACR issued a Statement and Call to Action Regarding the Administration’s Actions Affecting NIH and the American People
During the Opening Ceremony at the AACR Annual Meeting 2025, 2024-2025 AACR President Patricia M. LoRusso led attendees in a united demonstration of support for federally funded cancer research.
In response to the disruptions in federal cancer funding, the AACR launches its largest-ever grant program—15 grants of $1 million each to support early-stage and mid-career investigators.
During the AACR Annual Meeting 2025, the AACR hosted a panel discussion to discuss ways to safeguard progress while facing the Administration’s threats to the cancer research enterprise. The panel featured former NCI Director Kimryn Rathmell and former NIH Director Monica M. Bertagnolli.
“…and the brink of losing it.”
2024-2025 AACR President Patricia M. LoRusso highlighted the remarkable progress made against cancer and the consequences of cutting funding for cancer research during a special panel discussion at the AACR Annual Meeting.
In a statement on May 6, the AACR called on Congress to summarily reject the President’s FY2026 budget proposal for NIH, which would result in a nearly 40% cut to the Institute’s budget for lifesaving research.
On May 21–22, the AACR partnered with the Association of American Cancer Institutes for their annual Joint Hill Day. Cancer center directors and AACR members visited their Congressional representatives to highlight the value of bipartisan investment in NIH and NCI.
View photos from the Hill Day.
During National Cancer Research Month, the AACR brought together cancer centers, institutions, researchers, physicians, patients, survivors, and advocates to highlight the importance and impact of cancer research.
The Impact of disruptions to the NIH
Disruptions to the NIH affect every member of the cancer research community, including early-career scientists and especially the patients who rely on federally-funded advances to extend their lives.
“…they are structural failures that force promising researchers out of science.” 2024-2025 AACR President Patricia M. LoRusso describes the impact of funding disruptions on the next generation of cancer researchers.
“…and we need to keep this going.” Michael Methner is an 11-year-old cancer survivor featured in the AACR Cancer Progress Report. At a briefing in Washington to present the report to Congress, he took the microphone and asked legislators to continue their longstanding bipartisan support for medical research that benefits children like him.
2024-2025 AACR President Patricia M. LoRusso notes that disruptions to federally funded biomedical research could force the delay or cancellation of clinical trials of experimental therapeutics for a wide range of diseases, including cancer.
Vicki Jones has lived with her multiple myeloma diagnosis for 20 years because progress in cancer research has outpaced progression of her disease. Upheavals at NIH threaten to disrupt the delivery of new treatments that patients like Vicki desperately need to extend their lives.
