JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis stopped by the Southbank to announce a $30 million and $130 million set of cancer research and treatment funds while speaking inside Wolfson Children’s Hospital.
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The governor said the $30 million is included in the state budget he signed last month. We’re told it will go toward the recently announced Florida Cancer Innovation Fund through the Florida Department of Health. The governor said the fund will put money toward starting up cancer treatment sites in Florida’s rural living communities and create a program for hospitals, like Wolfson Children’s and Nemours, to apply for grants up to $2 million each as funding for cancer research projects.
“I don’t think there’s a single person in this state who has not been impacted by cancer either directly or indirectly,” Governor DeSantis said, “we’re all in this together. We want to get the job done.”
Governor DeSantis said the $130 million fund is one recently given to First Lady Casey DeSantis’ cancer research program. We’re told the money will, in part, go toward four hospital systems in Florida: Moffitt Cancer Center, UF Health Shands Hospital, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville.
“That will strengthen the quality and competitiveness of cancer care across Florida,” said DeSantis.
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The governor didn’t share exactly how much money Mayo Clinic and the other hospitals may receive, but he says the goal of the funding is to reduce cancer cases in a state that has some of the highest cancer case numbers in the U.S.
A recent estimate from the American Cancer Society said Florida will likely see more than 171,000 new cancer cases this year. It’s around 8.5% of the total estimated cancer cases for 2025 around the U.S.
“We don’t want to just support isolated projects. We want to build an integrated statewide approach that drives long-term progress,” said DeSantis.
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