Federally funded digestive disease research
Consistent and sustainable research funding is necessary to support innovative research and treatment development and secure a pipeline for future investigators to enter the field.
AGA position: Support long-term, sustainable funding for digestive disease and cancer research.
Each year, more than 54.4 million Americans are diagnosed with digestive disorders. In some of these areas, medical research has brought us closer to developing lifesaving treatments and cures. Yet, in others, we still lack even the basic understanding of the cause and transmission of diseases.
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Funding research to identify effective treatments and cures for these digestive diseases can save the U.S. health care system billions of dollars and tens of thousands of lives.
National Institutes of Health
While there have been many advances in prevention, screenings, diagnostics and treatments for digestive diseases and GI cancers, there are still gaps in research that need to be filled. As our nation’s premiere medical health agency, Congress has consistently shown bipartisan support for its initiatives by increasing funding.
Investing in biomedical research must be continuous and funding NIH at $51.3 billion will enable the Institute to build on the momentum of recent increases and expand NIH’s capacity to support promising research in all disciplines.
Sustaining the U.S. economy: Research funded by the NIH supports nearly 476,000 jobs and more than $81 billion in economic activity across the U.S. in 2019.1
Veterans Affairs (VA)
The veteran community has a very high prevalence of GI and liver diseases and benefits from cutting-edge, VA lead research.
Emerging evidence indicates that deployment-related diseases such as PTSD, Gulf War illness, and traumatic brain injury can change the composition of gut microbes and further exacerbate GI and liver illnesses to the point of becoming chronic diseases. One of the VA’s upcoming research series aims to gain better insight into the gut microbiome and its correlation with post-deployment GI and liver diseases.
AGA requests $1.05 billion for the VA Medical and Prosthetic Research Program to continue to prioritize and fund GI and liver disease research to ensure our nation’s heroes obtain the innovative treatments they deserve.
Department of Defense (DoD)
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)
Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP)
The Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program is the only dedicated funding source for extramural research into GI cancers impacting current members of the military, veterans and their families. The following GI-specific cancers are eligible for research grants:
| Cancer | 2020 est. cases | 2020 est. deaths | Five-year relative survival rate |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Liver |
42,810 |
30,160 |
20% |
|
Esophageal |
18,440 |
16,170 |
20% |
|
Stomach |
27,600 |
11,010 |
32% |
|
Colorectal |
147,950 |
53,200 |
65% |
These cancers have some of the lowest five-year relative survival rates across the cancer space. Veterans and active duty members of the military have an increased risk of mortality due to deployment related environmental exposure and lifestyle factors.
According to a 2017 study2, colorectal cancer was the third most common form of cancer among active duty military personnel. Screening rates among military personnel for colorectal cancer is high (81.5%)3 compared to the general public. However, health disparities related to race, poverty and mental health continue to serve as a barrier to colorectal cancer screenings in the Veterans Health Administration. The PRCRP has supported research into treatments for colorectal cancer, including research into treatments that would block the growth of metastatic colorectal cancer.
Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP)
The Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program is the only dedicated funding source for extramural medical research into deployment-related GI and liver illnesses. For fiscal year 2024, DoD included the following GI-specific illnesses:
- Inflammatory bowel diseases
- Food allergies
- Hepatitis B
Colorectal Cancer Research Program
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for men and women combined and third leading cancer for active duty military. However, it is preventable if caught early through timely screening.
While the majority of colorectal cancer diagnoses occur in individuals over the age of 50, there has been a marked increase in diagnoses among people in their 20s and 30s — a key demographic for active-duty personnel.4 For the past ten years, colorectal cancer has been eligible for funding through the Peer-Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP), competing against over a dozen other cancers for funding.
The PRCRP has supported research exploring issues important to both the warfighter and the civilian population, including whether environmental chemicals are associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer and whether drugs for other conditions can be used to treat colorectal cancer.
While this is important progress, with more and more young people being diagnosed with and dying from colorectal cancer, greater investment is urgently needed. Moreover, of the top five cancer killers, colorectal cancer is the only cancer not to have its own program within CDMRP.
Bottom line: Support long-term, sustainable funding for digestive disease and cancer research at the NIH, VA and DoD for FY 2025.
1. https://www.unitedformedicalresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/An-Unprecedented-Impact-PART-2-FINAL-7.1.20.pdf
2. https://academic.oup.com/milmed/article/182/7/e1883/4158590?login=true
3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31415338/
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28376186/
5. https://www.unitedformedicalresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/An-Unprecedented-Impact-PART-2-FINAL-7.1.20.pdf
