Boost cancer institute funding

Rare is the family who hasn't had a brush with cancer. Although cancer detection and treatment has vastly improved in the past two decades, the disease continues to kill 500,000 people year in the United States alone.

Medical science is learning about the disease, including ways to treat it that are tailored specifically to individuals. A good deal of this groundbreaking work has taken place at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, where researchers have discovered genes that cause breast cancer, colon cancer, ovarian cancer and others.

HCI receives $3.5 million a year from the state of Utah to support its work. Now the institute wants to secure $10 million in one-time funds, as well as ongoing funds of $5 million a year from the Utah Legislature to help retain researchers, support ongoing research and replace dwindling federal grants. State lawmakers should grant this request.

Although $5 million sounds like a lot of money, the truth is, in the arena of cancer research, it's not. Texas state officials recently announced a $3 billion state initiative for cancer research over the next decade. That effort, spawned after the death of former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, has cancer survivor Lance Armstrong as one of its leading advocates.

The Huntsman Cancer Institute operates on far more humble means — most of it privately raised and from federal grants — but it has unique research capabilities, such as the world's largest genetic database. The Utah Population Database combines genealogical information from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Utah Cancer Registry and records from the Utah Department of Health. This tool enables researchers to identify families who have an increased risk of cancer.

There also is a wealth of ongoing research in terms of cancer treatment. Approximately 100 clinical trials are ongoing at the Huntsman Cancer Institute at any one time. Because of these trials, researchers and caregivers can better tailor treatments to the needs of individuals. Not long ago, patients who developed certain forms of cancer underwent fairly uniform treatment regiments, which were not as successful.

The Huntsman Cancer Institute, which is owned by the state of Utah and is part of the University of Health Sciences campus, is also an important training ground for future cancer researchers and physicians. However, the institute is not seeking education funds. It is scheduled to make its request to the Legislature's Economic Development and Revenue Appropriations Subcommittee.

In the face of shrinking federal research dollars — the first cut in cancer research funds in 30 years — the Huntsman Cancer Institute needs additional funding to support its primary mission, which is furthering the understanding of the disease, discovering how best to treat and, eventually, conquer it. This appropriation would be a small price to pay to further the work of an institution that is literally changing lives and medical science's understanding of cancer in its many forms.