‘Cancer doesn’t care’: Patients pushed contentious politics to lobby Congress

Mary Katherine Johnson is a retired small business owner from outside Rochester, New York. I voted for Donald Trump three times.

Lexi Milling, who worked in a doctor’s office, is from Long Island, New York. It’s a democracy.

But the two women share a common bond. They both survived breast cancer.

And when the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network held its annual Citizen Lobbying Day in Washington, D.C., last month, Johnson and Milling were among more than 500 volunteers pushing Congress to keep cancer research and cancer support at the top of the U.S. health care agenda.

Annual appeal

In Washington, the day is something of a ritual for groups like Cancer.

This year it came as Democrats and Republicans in Washington slid toward a budget impasse that shut down the federal government indefinitely. But these volunteers transcended their political differences and found common ground.

"No one here has discussed whether you’re a Democrat, or whether you’re a Republican;" says Milling, one of 27 volunteers in the New York delegation. "Cancer doesn’t care."

Every volunteer lobbyist has been affected in one way or another by the deadly disease, which is expected to kill More than 600,000 People in the United States this year.

Johnson said that each of her mother’s ten siblings died of cancer, and her life’s friend also died at the age of 57, leaving behind his wife and two young daughters.

Like many volunteers in New York, Johnson also says she’s concerned about today’s political situation.

"I think we’re probably the most divided we’ve ever been," She says. "This scares me. It scares me for my grandchildren."

Katie Martin, a volunteer from outside Buffalo, New York, is also concerned. She and her daughter recently drove past political protesters yelling at each other in the street.

"My daughter is silent and then starts asking: What is this? And I don’t know how to explain it, because it doesn’t even make sense to me," She says. "It’s so heartbreaking."

Meling says she can barely watch the news these days. "Many Americans feel very stressed. There are a lot of things happening."

Bipartisan support

Americans are already divided on many issues: immigration, guns, and President Trump. But polls show that helping people with cancer and other serious illnesses has broad bipartisan support.

in One recent poll7 in 10 voters said it is very important for the federal government to fund medical research. This included a majority of Democrats and Republicans.

"In today’s environment, it is rare to see numbers like this." says Jarrett Lewis, a Republican pollster who conducted the survey of patient groups. "But almost everyone in this country knows someone who has had cancer."

Likewise, recently KFF poll It found that three-quarters of US adults, including most Republicans who align with the MAGA movement, want Congress to extend subsidies that help Americans buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces. (KFF is a non-profit health information organization that includes KFF Health News.)

These subsidies, which are critical for people with chronic diseases like cancer, are one of the major sticking points in the current budget impasse in Congress.

As volunteers gathered at a conference hotel in Washington, they focused on their shared agenda: increasing funding for cancer research, retaining insurance subsidies, and expanding access to cancer screenings.

"We may not agree on the political level. We may not agree even in social circumstances," said Martin, a volunteer in the Buffalo area. "But we can see beyond those differences because we are here for one reason."

State delegations rehearsed the presentations they would make to their members of Congress. They went through the personal stories they would share. They shared tips on how to deal with resistant employees and how to ask for a photo with a lawmaker.

On the morning of their lobby day, September 16, they reconvened in a cavernous ballroom, all wearing matching blue polo shirts and armed with red information folders to leave each office they would visit.

They received a pep talk from a pair of college basketball coaches. Then they headed across town to Capitol Hill.

The army of volunteers – from every state in the country – hit 484 of the 535 House and Senate offices.

Not every visit was an unqualified victory. Many Republican lawmakers object to extending insurance subsidies, arguing that they are too expensive.

But lawmakers from both parties have supported increasing research funding and supporting more cancer screenings.

New Yorkers felt good about that day. "It was amazing," He said the meal ended the day. "You can just feel the feeling of “everyone is stronger together”."

Remembrances and lessons

When evening fell, volunteers gathered on the National Mall for a candlelight vigil. It was raining. She played the bagpipes.

Around a pond near the Lincoln Memorial, about 10,000 tea lights in small paper bags twinkle. Each star had a name on it – a life affected by cancer.

John Manna, another New Yorker, describes himself as a Reagan Republican whose father died of lung cancer. He thought about the lessons this day could offer a divided nation.

"talk to people," He said. "Get to know each other as people, and then you can understand someone’s situations. We have a few disagreements, but you know, we don’t attack each other. We talk and discuss it."

Manna said he will be back next year.

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