After a brief government shutdown, FY26 funding bill is signed into law NIH gets $415M raise, NCI gets $128M more, CDMRP funding largely restored

NIH’s Bhattacharya acknowledges absence of causal link between vaccines and autism

Pressed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya acknowledged that he is not aware of any study pointing to a causal link between vaccines and autism.

“Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans” no longer classified as clinical trials at NIH in an effort to reduce administrative burden

NIH announced Jan. 29 that “Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans,” also called BESH, will no longer be considered clinical trials and will therefore no longer be subject to the requirements under the NIH definition of a clinical trial, including registration and reporting requirements in ClinicalTrials.gov.

The soul of oncology: Centering patient stories amid funding saga

Last week’s issue of The Cancer Letter included an obituary that the entire staff at The Cancer Letter had been dreading for years: Abdallah Abou Zahr, an oncologist at Roger Maris Cancer Center in Fargo, ND, died Jan. 23 of a liposarcoma after a five-year battle with the disease.

February 04, 2026

Podcast The Directors

The Directors: Gary Schwartz and Ramon Parsons on the best of times (for science), the worst of times (for funding)
Cancer centers fund small grants to boost morale amid low paylines

As NCI paylines drop to 4%, cancer centers are tapping into their institutional funds to provide “bridge funding,” typically in $50,000 to $100,000 increments, to enable investigators to keep their labs open until better times return—next year God willing.

January 30, 2026

Vol.52 No.04

By Paul Goldberg and Claire Marie Porter

Capitol Hill

FY26 funding package blocked in Senate after ICE shooting of Alex Pretti
New package—likely excluding DHS—may go back to House early next week

An argument can be made that anyone who has attempted to follow the path of spending bills on Capitol Hill over the past ten days should be evaluated for whiplash.

NIH suspends new embryonic stem cell line submissions

NIH is suspending the addition of new human embryonic stem cell lines to the Human Embryonic Stem Cell Registry, all while looking for alternatives. The agency also issued a request for information on “emerging biotechnologies to reduce or potentially replace remaining research reliance on human embryonic stem cells.”

January 30, 2026

Vol.52 No.04

By Sara Willa Ernst

After a brief government shutdown, FY26 funding bill is signed into law

NIH gets $415M raise, NCI gets $128M more, CDMRP funding largely restored

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

NIH’s Bhattacharya acknowledges absence of causal link between vaccines and autism

“Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans” no longer classified as clinical trials at NIH in an effort to reduce administrative burden

The soul of oncology: Centering patient stories amid funding saga

The Directors: Gary Schwartz and Ramon Parsons on the best of times (for science), the worst of times (for funding)
Cancer centers fund small grants to boost morale amid low paylines

FY26 funding package blocked in Senate after ICE shooting of Alex Pretti
New package—likely excluding DHS—may go back to House early next week

NIH suspends new embryonic stem cell line submissions

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After a brief government shutdown, FY26 funding bill is signed into law

NIH gets $415M raise, NCI gets $128M more, CDMRP funding largely restored

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

NIH’s Bhattacharya acknowledges absence of causal link between vaccines and autism

“Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans” no longer classified as clinical trials at NIH in an effort to reduce administrative burden

The soul of oncology: Centering patient stories amid funding saga

The Directors: Gary Schwartz and Ramon Parsons on the best of times (for science), the worst of times (for funding)Cancer centers fund small grants to boost morale amid low paylines

FY26 funding package blocked in Senate after ICE shooting of Alex PrettiNew package—likely excluding DHS—may go back to House early next week

NIH suspends new embryonic stem cell line submissions

Never miss an issue!

Login

The Directors: Gary Schwartz and Ramon Parsons on the best of times (for science), the worst of times (for funding)
Cancer centers fund small grants to boost morale amid low paylines

FY26 funding package blocked in Senate after ICE shooting of Alex Pretti
New package—likely excluding DHS—may go back to House early next week