DoD targeted for cancer funds

The 2009 defense appropriations bill has become a battleground for cancer research.

More than a dozen senators, aided by an intense grassroots lobby, are pushing for funds to examine asbestos-related cancer.

{mosads}Supporters argue that at least one-third of the people suffering from mesothelioma — a lethal form of cancer caused by asbestos exposure — have either been in the Navy or worked in Navy shipyards across the country.  

Without a steady funding stream for mesothelioma research, scientists who may have considered work in such a field have been turned off, according to Chris Hahn, the executive director of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (Meso Foundation).  

“Mesothelioma starts out somewhat as an orphan disease,” Hahn said in an interview. “It’s hard to motivate [researchers] unless there are consistent funds.”

The Meso Foundation has been behind a strong legislative and grassroots push to see more federal money poured into research and treatment of asbestos-related cancer. According to Senate records, the foundation is represented in Washington by Neimand Collaborative and has paid the lobby shop $335,000 since 2005.

But Hahn said the foundation is not looking to see money earmarked for the cause. Instead, they want to see mesothelioma listed as a priority part of the Pentagon’s peer-reviewed medical research program. Researchers would then compete for grants from the Department of Defense. And Congress has a say in how much money goes to the overall program — as well as which diseases would be listed as a priority.

In the 2008 defense appropriations bill, Congress appropriated $50 million for the peer-reviewed program.

Hahn said that it is yet unclear how much grant money would go into asbestos-related cancer research since the grant reviews are ongoing.

But he noted last year was the first time supporters saw a legislative victory, one that should be continued into fiscal 2009 appropriations.

It is unclear whether Congress will pass the 2009 defense appropriations bill or if it will approve a continuing resolution funding the Pentagon at the 2008 level.

Several senators sent a letter last month to the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Defense panel, including Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who have been at the forefront to get more money for research and treatment.

The town of Bremerton in Washington state, near the Puget Sound naval shipyard, has one of the highest incidences of asbestos-related cancer. And hundreds of people have been sickened or killed because of asbestos exposure from a former vermiculite mine in Libby, Mont. 

“Advancements in the early detection and treatment of this deadly cancer are greatly needed and the mesothelioma medical and research community is well-positioned to achieve this goal,” the senators wrote to the panel’s leaders. “Funding through the Department of Defense appropriations bill is an important demonstration of our nation’s commitment to addressing the tragedy of mesothelioma and its disproportionate impact on those who serve our country.”

Among the 15 senators who signed the letter are Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.).

Hahn said that his foundation is not planning to approach the Pentagon. He said they spoke to the Department of Veterans Affairs because it’s veterans who were exposed to asbestos on ships and, in particular, vis-à-vis shipbuilding, who are affected.

For example, Groton, Conn., one of the Navy’s largest submarine bases, found about 100,000 workers who have been exposed to asbestos, said Hahn. Much of the exposure in the Navy cases happened between World War II and the Vietnam War, when asbestos was used in shipyards and in ships.

It was used primarily for its fire-retardant properties and, at the time, was not thought to be dangerous. In fact, asbestos alone is not dangerous. Only when it is broken up into small particles that can become airborne does it become harmful.

Additionally, asbestos was used heavily for decades in construction, industry and even household appliances.

Exposure to asbestos even in small amounts can cause cancer, said Hahn.

It is estimated that about 3,000 Americans develop mesothelioma each year. The cancer usually develops many years after the exposure. Though the disease can remain latent for decades, it typically kills within two years of the initial diagnosis.

Vaughn Oney, a machinist who worked at Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia for 31 years, died of mesothelioma in 2006. A Newport News Circuit Court jury recently awarded $5.55 million to his widow.   

The Meso Foundation will hold its three-day annual symposium in Washington, starting on June 26. More than 100 grassroots supporters will be meeting that day with their congressional representatives. At last year’s symposium they met with 120 lawmakers, said Hahn.

The foundation’s hope for more research funds does not only rely on the defense bill. The so-called Ban Asbestos bill, introduced by Murray and passed in the Senate last October, would dole out $10 million a year for the cancer research. The companion to that bill has yet to pass the House.

“For decades the football was stuck in the opposing team’s endzone,” Hahn said. “The ball is finally moving, but we still have 90 yards to go out of 100.”

The Meso Foundation, based in Santa Barbara, Calif., funds about $1 million a year for research worldwide.

Ideally, Hahn said the scientific community would need $29 million a year to make visible progress.