Backlog of work grows at NIH as staff members are being hounded to quit

Anthony Letai reflects on Year One as NCI Director: “The NCI is in business”

“I don’t know of a single grant that left my desk that was not approved and funded,” NCI Director Anthony G. Letai said on this episode of The Cancer Letter Podcast. https://open.spotify.com/episode/2PFYGwliBDYEbxBXFd9MtB?si=95DNBAy0QGSKBX31_uETEA This episode is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Youtube. Letai recapped his first year as NCI director in conversation with Paul Goldberg,...

October 07, 2026

Conversation with The Cancer Letter

With Year One metrics in hand, Letai is ready to “bring it home” in Year Two
“I hope I don’t see any more reports of NCI cutting funding, because it just is not consistent with the facts”

A year ago, when he was sworn in as director of the National Cancer Institute, Anthony G. Letai set a goal: Reassure cancer researchers that the institute will keep a steady course aimed at finding treatments for cancer.

Trump targets HHS in $810M appropriations clawback

President Donald Trump has moved to cancel $810 million in government spending that has already been appropriated by Congress.

NIH introduces “Linked Discoveries,” a PubMed tool aimed at strengthening research replication, reproducibility

NIH has introduced Linked Discoveries, an experimental tool designed to help scientists more easily see how an individual research finding relates to the larger body of biomedical evidence.

October 02, 2026

Vol.52 No.36

Podcast The Directors

The Directors: Two Gulf Coast cancer center directors on why NCI designation matters—and why they want it
Lucio Miele and Raghu Kalluri: Science and technology have changed what an aspiring cancer center must accomplish

What should a cancer center look like in an era of AI, genomics, complex patient populations, rising costs, and declining public trust in science?

September 25, 2026

Vol.52 No.35

By Claire Marie Porter and Paul Goldberg

News Analysis

Trump weighs—and abandons—an executive order that would give OMB veto power over NIH grants

The White House last week considered, but ultimately abandoned, a plan to create a panel that would review NIH grants in an effort to weed out projects the administration regards as “woke.”

September 25, 2026

Vol.52 No.35

By Paul Goldberg

Backlog of work grows at NIH as staff members are being hounded to quit

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Anthony Letai reflects on Year One as NCI Director: “The NCI is in business”

With Year One metrics in hand, Letai is ready to “bring it home” in Year Two
“I hope I don’t see any more reports of NCI cutting funding, because it just is not consistent with the facts”

Trump targets HHS in $810M appropriations clawback

NIH introduces “Linked Discoveries,” a PubMed tool aimed at strengthening research replication, reproducibility

The Directors: Two Gulf Coast cancer center directors on why NCI designation matters—and why they want it
Lucio Miele and Raghu Kalluri: Science and technology have changed what an aspiring cancer center must accomplish

Trump weighs—and abandons—an executive order that would give OMB veto power over NIH grants

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Backlog of work grows at NIH as staff members are being hounded to quit

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

Anthony Letai reflects on Year One as NCI Director: “The NCI is in business”

With Year One metrics in hand, Letai is ready to “bring it home” in Year Two“I hope I don’t see any more reports of NCI cutting funding, because it just is not consistent with the facts”

Trump targets HHS in $810M appropriations clawback

NIH introduces “Linked Discoveries,” a PubMed tool aimed at strengthening research replication, reproducibility

The Directors: Two Gulf Coast cancer center directors on why NCI designation matters—and why they want itLucio Miele and Raghu Kalluri: Science and technology have changed what an aspiring cancer center must accomplish

Trump weighs—and abandons—an executive order that would give OMB veto power over NIH grants

Never miss an issue!

Login

With Year One metrics in hand, Letai is ready to “bring it home” in Year Two
“I hope I don’t see any more reports of NCI cutting funding, because it just is not consistent with the facts”

The Directors: Two Gulf Coast cancer center directors on why NCI designation matters—and why they want it
Lucio Miele and Raghu Kalluri: Science and technology have changed what an aspiring cancer center must accomplish