Hope Is Bigger Than Politics, and Prevention Is Stronger Than Cancellation

I first saw the cover of The New York Times magazine in my social media feed. Splashed across it were the words “The War on Cancer” with a red canceled stamp running through it. It stopped me in my tracks. I was compelled to respond. To be completely honest, I did not read the whole piece. It was too heartbreaking, and too long. But the cover alone said enough, because anyone following the news knows what is happening. For decades, we have been making real advancements in cancer research and prevention. And yet, only in the past four months has that progress been effectively canceled. That reality is what compelled me to write.

Heartbreaking for parents with children in treatment. Heartbreaking for those enduring cancer therapy right now. Heartbreaking for the countless millions we have already lost.

And now, to see prevention work currently being dismantled is devastating. Organizations like ours were the first of their kind, committed to cancer prevention long before it was popular. Watching that work pulled apart is not just disappointing for me personally, it is crushing for millions who still live with cancer’s reality every day.

Canceling research is only part of the story. The suffering there is already huge, with promising studies slowed, breakthroughs delayed, and patients left waiting for answers. But it does not stop with research. It is also about the policies that affect health insurance, food assistance, and access to care. It is about families who cannot afford prescriptions, rural communities with no hospitals, and children who grow up in unsafe environments.

It is also about the environment. It is counterintuitive to roll back protections that were put in place to reduce cancer causing exposures, while at the same time talking about wanting people to be healthier. People cannot be healthier without safe food, drinkable water, protections from cancer causing chemicals, and reliable access to healthcare.

That is cancer prevention today, making sure people can afford care, making sure families do not go hungry, making sure communities have the conditions to stay healthy in the first place. And while those needs grow, resources often go elsewhere, leaving the very systems that keep people healthy under strain. I am not a crime prevention expert, but it seems like an unpopular idea to divert dollars away from children, food, cancer research, and healthcare.

The actions we see today do not always match the future most of us want. We want healthier families, stronger communities, and better futures for our children. Yet too often the choices being made point elsewhere, toward short term fixes instead of long term health.

This is not about one party or another. Prevention has been vulnerable to systemic challenges for decades. And until we come together, Republicans, Democrats, Independents, all of us, families will continue to carry the burden.

When we prevent cancer, we also prevent other diseases. The same work that reduces toxic exposures, improves food systems, and increases access to care strengthens public health far beyond oncology. And cancer research itself has advanced much more than cancer treatment. Discoveries from cancer science have helped in Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, and countless other conditions. If you think cancer does not touch your life, think again. The science touches every part of real life. Canceling that progress is canceling hope across the board.

From the beginning, our work has never been about self-interest. It has been about building something bigger, a grassroots movement to elevate prevention across the landscape. That independence and integrity matter. I am proud of what we have built. But pride does not ease the disappointment of seeing progress interrupted.

Too often, health has been treated like a brand. We have seen corporations fund cures for cancer, heart disease, and diabetes, while also earning profits from the very products and practices that make people sick. Those contradictions do not add up, and they leave families paying the price with their health and futures.

That is one reason we have never taken that kind of sponsorship. We could never co-brand prevention with the very things that cause harm. Our work has always been independent, grassroots, and accountable to communities. It is not the most profitable way to live. I have had to juggle side hustles to keep going. But I also know this: the conversation has been elevated, and lives have been saved. And that will always be worth more than any sponsorship dollars.

Yes, it is personally disappointing to see prevention work pushed aside. But my disappointment is nothing compared to what families face in real time: parents waiting for another treatment option, patients praying for more time, loved ones searching for hope in devastating odds. Canceling the War on Cancer is not just a policy decision. It is a human one, with consequences measured in grief and futures cut short.

And yet, we know prevention works. We know research works. We know communities, when given the tools and knowledge, can be healthier. That is why I keep going, even when headlines tell us the war is canceled. Because for families living with cancer today, and for the generations we hope to protect tomorrow, this work must never be canceled.

That is why I work with everybody. I bring people to the table, no matter how much they disagree with me, no matter if they like me or not, left or right. None of that matters when it comes to saving lives. What matters is showing up, listening, and solving problems together. Even when others are not listening, I look for solutions.

Because the work we do is not just about cancer. It is about caring. It is about loving your neighbor. It is about loving your community. It is about standing up for what is human and good.

And here is the hope. If we can do this, you can too. You can sit at the table with people you disagree with. You can look past politics and labels. You can demand that prevention be protected, not canceled. You can refuse the contradictions and insist on the real thing, health, care, and justice for communities.

We also cannot take the bait from those who want us to stay angry, divided, or stuck in left versus right debates. This is not about proving who is right or wrong. It is about saving lives. It is about a human issue that touches every family, every community, regardless of politics.

And while all of this sounds good, none of it is going anywhere unless we can actually talk to each other. It is not easy. In fact, it can be painful. I cannot even begin to rehash some of the things that have been said or done to me in that effort. But it has to be done, because the stakes are too high.

Because while the actions we see today may show that prevention is not the goal, prevention must remain ours. Health must remain ours. Hope must remain ours.

That is real leadership. That is the work worth protecting. And that is why, no matter what gets canceled, we will keep going, because hope is bigger than politics, and prevention is stronger than cancellation.