As a leading member-driven organization dedicated to improving cancer patient outcomes by advancing the science and application of cancer immunotherapy, the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) is deeply concerned by the recent announcement from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that will cut billions of dollars in indirect costs for current and future grants to research institutions across the U.S.
This action will have catastrophic consequences for the entire U.S. biomedical research ecosystem and severely limit the ability of the research and medical community to develop and provide optimal care for cancer patients. For decades, the U.S. federal government and American universities have partnered to ensure lifesaving research thrives; indirect costs support critical research infrastructure, including support staff and modern facilities, which allow researchers to develop the next wave of safe and effective cancer treatments. Indiscriminately and immediately restricting this vital funding will cripple existing and future research programs across the country, causing significant harm to cancer patients and ensuring the U.S. loses its position as the leading innovator in biomedical research. SITC urges the NIH and the new administration to reverse this action immediately.
SITC is also closely monitoring the impact of the numerous recent federal orders affecting biomedical research. Interruptions in ongoing research, even if temporary, will likely delay new, life-saving treatments from reaching cancer patients across the U.S., both in the short- and long-term future. Such interruptions will also disproportionately affect early career scientists who are initiating novel research that will both lead to a cure for cancer and further cement the US as a pioneer in biomedical research.