Today Gita has gone to Washington, DC to participate in a Stand Up For Science protest. She has many reasons, including her own job, to be concerned about science funding, but she is choosing to emphasize my concerns (first photo) as well as the universality of science (second photo).
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| The mesothelioma ribbon is at the top, in the middle. |
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| Gita, ready to set off for DC to fight for science |
As I've stated before, my home team is strong. On the larger stage, there are other mesothelioma heroes who are fighting for people like me every day and whom I would like to acknowledge here. Chief among them is the Mesothelioma Applied Research Fund (MARF), also known by the slogan in their website's url, curemeso.org.
MARF provides information, funding, support, and advocacy for mesothelioma patients, caregivers, and researchers.
Information. MARF's website provides information on mesothelioma in general, the different types of mesothelioma, current treatments, clinical trials, and the location of specialists. Given the rarity of mesothelioma, this information is not always easily available elsewhere.
Funding. MARF provides funding for mesothelioma research, with an emphasis on early-stage research that has a harder time attracting funding in the larger world of competitive grants. They also provide financial assistance for mesothelioma patients who cannot afford to travel to receive the treatment they need.
Support. MARF provides a range of support services, including online support groups for patients, caregivers, and bereaved family members, and an on-staff specialist nurse who is available to answer questions. They also hold an annual International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma to build community, share strategies for treatment, survival, and legal redress, and showcase the latest research updates.
Advocacy. MARF supports September 25 as Mesothelioma Awareness Day and advocates for mesothelioma research before congress.
My hat's off to these folks.
Oh such cute posters! And the little puppy paw prints did not go unnoticed ;-) Go Gita!
ReplyDeleteI had a ticket for the Stand Up For Science protest here in Birmingham but I wound up having to accompany my mother to a not-entirely-unrelated doctor appointment, to check out her lungs following ten days in the hospital for RSV and pneumonia. Looking forward to seeing some good media coverage of the protests tonight!
I was not previously aware of the MARF website but it appears to be a detailed source of information and help, which is quite encouraging!
I read about these protests from my mostly pro-science non-US home and I hope they do some good, at least to build up the social networks and legal know-how for the harder fights yet to come. "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice" - very true, but only if people make the effort to actually DO something. Otherwise the moral universe, like everything else, arcs towards maximum entropy. "Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living!"
ReplyDeleteWell said!
DeleteI will definitely check out the MARF website!! Go Gita!
ReplyDeleteAlready a supporter! And dammit, I can't BELIEVE I missed the march. I didn't even hear about it. I participated one year, but that was long ago. Good for Gita!!!
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