Research Saves Lives
Life-saving scientific research is under attack in Washington, and your help is needed to protect funding, advance patient care, and preserve jobs.
What You Need to Know
| 1 | The Trump Administration wants to make a $5.8 billion cut to the budget of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the country’s primary medical research agency. |
| 2 | The Administration also wants to give political appointees the power to approve or cancel medical research grants, instead of scientific peer review through a rule proposed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). |
The combined effect of these proposals would severely damage America’s economy and healthcare, which depend on strong investment in scientific research. Globally, it would diminish the country’s reputation as a leader in medical discoveries.
Worst of all, cuts to research funding and the proposed changes to the grant process will harm the millions of people affected by cancer, blood disorders, heart disease, and stroke.
ASH, which represents more than 18,000 clinicians and scientists, strongly urges Congress to support NIH and protect it against political interference.
NIH Funding Boosts Growth and Development
Biomedical research stimulates the U.S. economy. On average, each dollar of NIH funding generates more than twice as much in economic output. These benefits are very important to many communities, especially those where universities, research institutes, and medical colleges are major contributors to the local economy.
Medical Research Supports Jobs
Federally-supported research occurs in every state and nearly every congressional district, and NIH funding in particular directly and indirectly supports hundreds of thousands of jobs nationwide, including 390,863 jobs nationwide in FY 2025.
If OMB’s rule takes effect, early-career investigators could be discouraged from pursuing jobs in the U.S. because their years of work could be upended without warning, purely for political reasons. The country risks losing top scientific talent and weakening its own research leadership for decades.
How Does NIH Support Your State?
For more information on how NIH funding affects the economy, patients, and medical advances in your state, download our state fact sheets.
Americans Like Medical Research, Not Political Interference
Support for quality scientific research is not niche, it’s mainstream. Seventy-one percent of registered voters believe federal funding for medical research on cures for cancer and other debilitating health issues should increase, according to a national poll.
In addition, OMB’s proposed grantmaking rule changes received nearly 500,000 public comments, almost all of which were opposed to the plan. Americans recognize the value of stable, merit-based, nonpartisan science and medical research, especially those whose lives have been saved by it.
Millions of Americans are affected by blood diseases and disorders. Without vital research supported by NIH, the health threats are alarmingly real for individuals living with blood cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, and conditions such as sickle cell disease (SCD), anemia, venous thromboembolism (blood clots), and hemophilia.
Investing in research is not optional; it’s lifesaving. I’m alive today because of advances in stem cell transplants and targeted therapies. Federal programs that support patients, caregivers, and equitable access to care are the backbone of recovery. Every dollar toward science is a vote for survival, for hope, for the future.
Patients Can't Wait While Politicians Debate
By sidelining scientific experts and putting grant decisions in the hands of political appointees, OMB’s proposal would slow down critical research and harm patients. New and innovative treatments exist today because Congress has sustained bipartisan, hands-off investments in NIH, CDC, basic science, clinical research, and public health. These investments are why:
- The 5-year survival rate for all cancers combined in the U.S. has reached a historic 70%
- Since 1949, treatment advances in blood cancers have saved 25.8 million life-years
- If the current pace of innovation continues, advances in blood cancer treatment will save an additional 18.9 million life-years between 2026 and 2040.
Millions of patients are alive today because generations of federally funded researchers had the stability to pursue discoveries. The research pipeline needs continuity: basic discoveries lead to translational studies, clinical trials, and eventually new standards of care. Interrupting that pipeline means fewer “next options” for patients whose disease stops responding to today’s treatments.
Without NIH funding or rigorous peer review in grantmaking decisions, health care and research professionals may no longer be able to continue their groundbreaking work in hematology. Fewer R01 grants, the most commonly used and competitive program for independent research projects, will halt progress in developing treatments and cures. Facing cuts and potential restrictions on their work, fewer individuals may pursue careers in scientific research and those who do may look abroad for better opportunities.
Since the start of the year, NIH has scaled back new grant awards by $2.3 billion. The Administration's proposed cut of nearly 12.3% to NIH’s budget will derail countless research projects, threatening the position of the U.S. as a global leader in scientific research. The Congressional Budget Office report from 2025 estimates that a cut of just 10% would decrease the number of new drugs coming to market by roughly 4.5%.
This alone would threaten the position of the U.S. as a global leader in scientific research. But also consider that a major reason for U.S. dominance in biomedical research is the long-held tradition of experts deciding which federal grants get funded. Peer review has proven far more effective than political favoritism in identifying promising research and protecting public investment.
Read stories on NIH cuts affecting health care and research professionals
With these cuts (both real and threatened), the likelihood of keeping early-stage investigators in the pipeline is low, and the likelihood of other nations scooping up well-educated research professionals is high. This brain drain will jeopardize the U.S.’ position as a leader in medical innovation and the development of new cures.
Critical advancements in the understanding and treatment of blood disorders would not have been possible without Congress’ investment in NIH. Proposed budget cuts to NIH would slow or stop lifesaving advances in areas like pediatric leukemia, sickle cell disease, bone marrow transplant, and personalized medicine. We need trained experts who understand rapidly changing science to judge the most promising studies and clinical trials.
Millions of patients are alive today because generations of federally funded researchers had the stability to pursue discoveries that became CAR T-cell therapies, bone marrow transplants, and immunotherapies.
Below are a few major hematology breakthroughs made possible because of bipartisan federal support for research over the past several decades:
Gene therapies for sickle cell disease
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first cell-based gene therapies for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD) in patients 12 years and older in December 2023. These advancements hold promise for delivering more targeted and effective treatments not only for SCD, but also for other rare diseases with limited treatment options. The FDA’s approval of these groundbreaking therapies was the result of decades of research, including that funded by NIH.
CAR-T therapy for blood cancers
The approval of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy by the FDA in August 2017 marked an important shift in treatment for individuals with blood cancers who have exhausted all other options – by harnessing the power of a patient’s own immune system to eradicate cancer. The FDA’s approval of this breakthrough treatment resulted from more than 10 years of research, supported by funding from NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and National Cancer Institute.
Improved blood clot treatments
Diseases such as heart attacks and strokes, which arise from clots in our blood vessels, are among the most common causes of death in developed countries. However, advances in therapy have lowered the risk of blood clots in leg veins by more than 70%, with deaths from heart attacks reduced by nearly 50%.
Additional Information
#Fight4Hematology
ASH created the #Fight4Hematology Action Hub to keep you up to date on ASH's efforts and provide four easy ways you can get involved to protect the future of hematology research and advances in patient care. Together, we can drive meaningful change!
Advocacy
Blood Diseases/Disorders
