With budget cuts looming at the National Cancer Institute, a publicly funded cancer cooperative has begun to shut down clinical trials and stop some research programs on a variety of cancers. Among the hardest hit areas, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal, will be rare cancers like sarcoma and head and neck cancers. The cooperative said that it was eliminating 3,000 spots in clinical trials this year and some groups were shuttering entire trials. The groups were asked to explore ways to cut operations due to flat funding from the federal government, which has been tightening the rein on research funds as it tries to ratchet down the federal deficit. The NCI's proposed budget includes a $9 million reduction in funds--which amounts to a .2 percent slice out of its current budget--so more research cuts are anticipated.
- read the article from The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.)
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