white background with the American Cancer Society Logo: Funding Progress, Protecting Cancer Cures: Press Conference & Public Health Event: Tuesday, August 26th from 10:00-11:00am The People's Plaza, 530 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19106 Cancer research funding is essential. Congress is considering massive cuts to federally funded cancer research, we must raise our voices to protect cancer cures. Your PA member of Congress needs to hear from you! ACS CAN is holding a press conference at Independence Hall–a landmark of American progress–to oppose research funding cuts and show our support for continued investment in U.S. medical innovation. Scan the QR code to register or visit: https://www.fightcancer.org/fundpaprogress Reach out to lydia.lippoldgelb@cancer.org with questions

@acscan.bsky.social is hosting Protect Cancer Cures on 8/26 in Philly🔬 Free to attend, just register & show up. Bring your neighbor, or a friend and make it clear lifesaving research isn’t up for debate.
Scan the QR code to register or visit: www.fightcancer.org/fundpaprogress

Quote on a black background stating, "The ability to tell the truth ... is an essential prerequisite for a free society," attributed to Gretchen Goldman and Erica Chenoweth.

"… we are witnessing what happens to a nation’s science and technology enterprise when democratic principles and the rule of law are ignored." write Gretchen Goldman and Erica Chenoweth in a new #ScienceEditorial. https://scim.ag/4mNshru

“There are no guarantees in this career — the contest for federal funding is exceptionally competitive.”

The road to discovery - a collaborative effort towards new insights in blood plasma RNA profiling After more than seven years of research, our extracellular RNA quality control (exRNAQC) study has culminated in a scientific publication. This milestone is not just about sharing new findings – it represents the power of collaboration, determination, and the pursuit of scientific rigor.

Two authors of a study in Nature Communications explain the collaborative project on blood plasma RNA profiling, including how the team recognised every contributor’s role, highlighting that scientific progress thrives on openness, teamwork, and collective effort. #Academicsky #medsky 🧪

How to make America healthy: the real problems — and best fixes Nature - The United States has lower life expectancy than most similarly wealthy nations. Chronic disease is part of the cause, but so are guns, drugs and cars.

Chronic disease is part of why the US has lower life expectancy than most similarly wealthy nations - but so are guns, drugs, and cars

https://go.nature.com/3I0hHON

Harvard vs Trump: what this epic battle means for science Nature - Research across science and medicine will probably shrink at one of the world’s most elite universities amid a new political reality.

Legal experts argue that Harvard is ultimately likely to prevail in its challenges to the Trump administration’s latest attacks, but how and when remains unclear

https://go.nature.com/3I2R4bR

Subject: From the NIH Principal Deputy Director: Guidance relating to NIH Priorities Colleagues, It has come to our attention that some staff are giving guidance to various employees that the word "diversity" may not be used in any context, and that anything with the word "diversity" in it is not allowed. This is not true. For example, an employee was told they could not go to a conference to discuss research on "neurodiverse individuals." Others are being told not to use the phrase "genetic diversity." Obviously, this is bad guidance. There are clearly many appropriate uses of the word diversity, and in no way does the NIH police speech or ban

Please ask your staff to use common sense when implementing NIH priorities or ensuring compliance with executive orders. If they are not sure about something, they should ask up their chain of command to get an answer. For NIH to continue its important mission, all staff must work collaboratively to promote rigorous science that does not discriminate and that will lead to potential breakthroughs for the health of all Americans. Please share this information with other leadership across your ICOs as appropriate. Matt

In an email to staff, NIH deputy director Matt Memoli says: "It has come to our attention that some staff are giving guidance... that the word 'diversity' may not be used in any context."

"Obviously this is bad guidance... Please ask your staff to use common sense when implementing NIH priorities."

Nothing really new here but another account of the imposed demise of American science.

Shattered Science: The Research Lost as Trump Targets NIH Funding The Trump administration cut research funding that sought cures for future pandemics, examined the causes of dementia and tried to prevent HIV transmission. More than 150 researchers shared with ProPublica what is being lost.

Few are telling this trainwreck's tale with as much rigor and passion as @anniewaldman.bsky.social‬ @ #ProPublica.

"[Trump] ...has terminated more than 1,450 [#NIH] grants withholding more than $750 million in funds."

Read the full piece zurl.co/fCpUU & join us to fight back.
#StandUpForScience

The Bethesda Declaration The Bethesda Declaration

"I can only admire the courage and conviction of the people making it: there are a great many NIH people who are publicly willing to put their names to this, even though they know how it's likely to be received. Let's hope that courage is indeed contagious."

zurl.co/5B0hB
#BethesdaDeclaration

With Covid vaccine decisions, RFK Jr. unleashes an unfettered assault on public health RFK Jr.'s unilateral decision to revise Covid booster guidance represents a bulldozing of safeguards, our columnist writes

RFK Jr.'s unilateral decision to revise Covid booster guidance represents a bulldozing of safeguards buff.ly/xAj0Hvm

Renewal of NIH grants linked to more innovative results, study finds Survey of hundreds of scientists’ work suggests that cutting off funding disrupts focus and reduces the novelty of research.

It's not surprising to see that cutting off funding disrupts science and impacts its novelty, but I think it's important that this is documented and shared 🧪 . For more see the news coverage in @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Raise your hand if you want a Covid-19 booster!

🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚🤚

Senator Durbin noted that some (I believe Republican Senators) had indicated the US had been doing more than its share of biomedical research and it was time for other countries take a turn.

I felt I had to interrupt to respond...

What will happen if childhood vaccination rates continue to decline in the US?

A modeling study investigates potential long-term effects of declining or ceasing routine childhood vaccination for measles, rubella, diphtheria, and poliomyelitis.

Read the full study: ja.ma/3SWwa05

#MedSky

Trump officials take steps toward a radically different NSF Efforts to shrink staff, budget, and focus have alarmed members of Congress

Another scoop from Jeff Mervis (@policyhound.bsky.social): NSF's ~1400 grant terminations have disproportionately affected PIs from groups underrepresented in science: women, racial & ethnic minorities, & those with disabilities. 1/3
www.science.org/content/arti...

Group of prisoners of Auschwitz burning corpses of people murdered in gas chambers in burning pits. Smoke is visible above the pile.

Group of prisoners of Auschwitz burning corpses of people murdered in gas chambers in burning pits. Smoke is visible above the pile.

The two pictures are 11 years apart.

On 10 May 1933 the Nazi party staged ideological spectacle of burning of 'un-German’ books.

2nd image: Auschwitz II-Birkenau, burning pits outside gas chamber V, 1944.

#Auschwitz warns us of where ideologies of hatred can lead to.

Omg this gets even wilder…

Top spokespersons for NIH & HHS asked Nature journalist to hold on a story **for a week**…

After which the NIH director called the story “rumors”, hours before the rumors were confirmed true.

You can’t make this stuff up. Thank the heavens for great sci journalists.

This is figure 3, which shows the estimated losses from individual extreme heat events by carbon majors.

A Perspective in Nature presents a transparent and reproducible scientific framework to formalize how trillions in economic losses are attributable to the extreme heat caused by emissions from fossil fuel companies, which could inform climate liability claims. go.nature.com/4jOubX8 🧪

journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

Can confirm: 60 Minutes will be worth watching tonight about #NIH.

Autistic people and experts voice alarm at RFK’s ‘terrible’ approach to condition Health secretary is planning wide-ranging monitoring of autistic people’s health record and cuts to disability services

Autistic people and experts voice alarm at RFK’s ‘terrible’ approach to condition - inexplicable, ill-informed and damaging

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

The survival rate from cardiac arrest among #marathon and half-marathon runners has improved by almost 50% since 2010.

Availability of both bystander CPR and AEDs have led to significant improvements in outcomes.

➡️ A JAMA study explains more: ja.ma/3GqT9xj

#MedSky

Male PIs have an average of 1.44 awards in a given year with 68.6% having only a single award.

Female PIs have an average of 1.35 awards with 73.8% having only a single award.

Thus, 7% more female investigators are vulnerable to becoming unfunded through loss of a single grant.

13/n

🧪 Our Terminated NSF Grant Tracker is live 🧪

🔴 114 NSF grants listed so far

🔴 Cancelled grants focused on

→ Training scientists
→ Misinformation
→ AI
→ Climate change

Credit to @noamross.net for all the work to build this & to all PIs who submitted their info.

Link: airtable.com/appGKlSVeXni...

Where do proteins go in cells? Next-generation methods map the molecules’ hidden lives Nature - Spatial proteomics is helping biologists to uncover how cells work by mapping where proteins operate.

If you want to understand how cells function, you have to work out what proteins interact with — and where

https://go.nature.com/3RmUUy0

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities has had the greatest relative cuts of any NIH Institute (unclear if NIMHD still exists).

HIV has had the highest proportion of research grants cut.
Black and Latinx people comprise 70% new HIV diagnoses.

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

This 2025 Recommendation Statement from the USPSTF recommends providing interventions or referrals, during pregnancy and after birth, to support breastfeeding.

This 2025 Recommendation Statement from the USPSTF recommends providing interventions or referrals, during pregnancy and after birth, to support breastfeeding.

https://ja.ma/4lsfzhI

Panels: 1) Diversifying healthcare innovation funding with @sindyea.bsky.social; 2) Debate! What ethical oversight is needed for healthcare innovation? with @kellieowens.bsky.social; 3) The role of AI in learning health systems. Generously funded by @dorisdukefdn.bsky.social and anonymous foundation

Awards intended to increase the diversity of the biomedical workforce are also substantially affected, but this is not as evident in the word cloud analysis.

More later...

/fin