Evaluating the presidential candidates' pledges for cancer research, health care

Having just finished watching the Democratic National Convention, I am motivated to learn more about each presidential candidate’s pledges, and how they might impact cancer doctors, nurses and patients.

We start with Barack Obama. As you may now know from the convention speech, Obama’s mother died of ovarian cancer at 54. During his acceptance speech to be candidate of the Democratic Party, he also alluded to her having difficulties with insurance payment while she was undergoing chemotherapy. He also stated in this speech that he would increase “scientific funding” and has previously stated he would increase NCI funding, though I have not been able to track down an exact increase. He said in Des Moines, Iowa, on August 27, 2007: “As President, I will make ending cancer the top priority it needs to be by increasing funding for the NIH, NCI and other medical research grants. The fight against cancer is a critically important issue in the lives of millions of Americans. It needs to be a top priority for our government." Finally, he mentioned several times during his DNC speech that he would support more compassionate family leave for family members caring for loved ones who are ill.

John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, is a well-known skin cancer survivor, having had multiple melanomas removed (four times!). He famously released his medical records earlier this year to show that his cancer has not recurred to date. McCain has also pledged to increase the NCI funding, though the amount of increase is not clear, and likely will come with time limits. He has not specifically commented on increasing or expanding family leave. His health insurance policy does not specifically address chemotherapy (nor does Obama’s). I am sure we will learn more with his speech.

Lest you think that all the candidates sound perfect and we just have to wait a few more months for the tides to change, not all are as optimistic. For example, NCI director John Neiderhuber was, “asked whether he has approached any of the presidential candidates, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), to seek support for biomedical research. Dr. Niederhuber said he has not. But he said ‘that so far I'm disappointed with what I've heard. I don't think any of these candidates has a real commitment to biomedical research.’” Food for thought.