Five Questions With: Susan Roberts

SUSAN ROBERTS is government relations director for the Rhode Island chapter of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. / COURTESY AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY CANCER ACTION NETWORK
SUSAN ROBERTS is government relations director for the Rhode Island chapter of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. / COURTESY AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY CANCER ACTION NETWORK

Susan Roberts is government relations director for the Rhode Island chapter of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the nonprofit, non-partisan advocacy affiliate of the ACS. Roberts, whose office is in Warwick, has worked for ACS CAN for 16 years as a public health lobbyist and advocate. She also serves on the Partnership to Reduce Cancer board.

The 21st Century Cures Act was overwhelmingly passed by both houses of Congress and signed by President Barack Obama. The $6.3 billion bill includes $1.8 billion in funds for the Cancer Moonshot that Vice President Joe Biden has championed since his son, Beau Biden, died from a brain tumor. Roberts, a graduate of Indiana University, talked with Providence Business News about the cancer research provisions of the legislation and how Rhode Island institutions and patients might benefit from this new funding.

PBN: Can you describe how the $1.8 million in federal funding for cancer research will be allocated to different kinds of cancer?

ROBERTS: The concept behind the Cancer Moonshot is to accelerate broad cancer research in a collaborative fashion. The initiative aims to make more therapies available to more patients, while also improving our ability to prevent cancer and detect it at an early stage. The bill, signed into law by President Obama on Dec. 13, will help support research being done across the country to treat and end the disease in its many forms.

- Advertisement -

PBN: Do you believe Vice President Joe Biden’s goal of curing cancer is achievable, either for a specific cancer or for a larger cohort of cancers? Why or why not?

ROBERTS: I am confident that we can end cancer as we know it, thanks in part to the type of groundbreaking work being done here in Rhode Island. Nationally, the Cancer Moonshot initiative offers clear next steps to accelerate the pace of progress against the disease, including creating a large-scale patient network to gather information about tumor profiles, developing an immunotherapy translational science network and improving evidence-based approaches to early detection and prevention. All of these factors, combined with the intangible human factor – dedicated cancer researchers, committed advocates and volunteers like the thousands who belong to the American Cancer Society and ACS CAN, and all of those fighting against cancer by raising funds, increasing awareness and pushing for breakthroughs – will undoubtedly help to usher in future cures for cancer.

PBN: How do you think Rhode Island research institutions might benefit from this influx of funding?

ROBERTS: We are fortunate to have many outstanding research organizations here in Rhode Island. In 2015, the National Institutes of Health awarded $132.5 million in grants to Rhode Island institutions, including Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital and the University of Rhode Island. This supported more than 1,660 jobs and $276.2 million in economic activity in the state. More than 80 percent of the NIH funding is made available to research institutions across the country. Therefore, the increased funding from 21st Century Cures is bound to result in increases in grant funding – and more importantly, breakthroughs in treatments – here in the Ocean State.

PBN: How soon might patients actually see lifesaving results from such research initiatives?

ROBERTS: The recent passage of 21st Century Cures represents a significant victory for cancer patients and their families nationwide. Although nobody can predict exactly how soon cancer patients will see results, we know that the additional funding set aside in this legislation will enable the NIH and the National Cancer Institute to begin implementing many of the Moonshot’s Blue Ribbon Panel recommendations for accelerating cancer research.

These expert recommendations range from improved data sharing – so that researchers can see patterns and possibilities across studies and cancers more quickly – to increased focus on emerging and promising treatments, like immunotherapy, where the body’s own immune system is harnessed against cancer. This reinvestment in cancer research is certain to bring treatments and cures to patients faster than would have otherwise been possible. Never before have we been so close to making so much progress in such a short amount of time against this disease.

PBN: Did ACS CAN support this legislation; what are the strengths and weaknesses of the legislation’s cancer research provisions?

ROBERTS: None of us is more than one degree from someone with cancer – a loved one, a co-worker, or ourselves. That’s why, this past September, more than 700 ACS CAN volunteers converged on Washington, D.C., to meet with lawmakers and urge their support of an increase in funding to the NCI and NIH. ACS CAN also worked to connect tens of thousands of cancer advocates with their lawmakers by phone, email and in-person meetings, to share their personal cancer stories and voice their support for this legislation.

By providing funding to the NIH through the 21st Century Cures, specifically for the national Cancer Moonshot, Congress has ensured that more cutting-edge cancer research makes it from the laboratory to the patients who need it most. The NCI, under director Doug Lowy’s clear leadership, has laid out a well-defined path for making the vice president’s Moonshot vision a reality, and ACS CAN was proud to be part of pushing for the passage of this funding on behalf of cancer patients. With the legislation and the funding now in place, the Cancer Moonshot can help us move forward and accelerate the pace of progress against this disease. However, there is still work to be done, and ACS CAN will continue to advocate for increased funding for cancer research going into 2017. Anyone who would like to become involved in these efforts by joining or learning more can do so by visiting acscan.org/RI.

No posts to display