The 21st century is a time of rapid growth and change, and we continue to generate new knowledge just waiting to be applied to health. Our ability to understand the science of health as a result of investments in biomedical research will fundamentally alter the way we detect, treat, and most importantly, prevent disease.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the nation’s medical research agency, has been a driving force behind these advances for many decades. NIH is the largest source of funding for medical research in the world, creating hundreds of thousands of high-quality jobs as we fund thousands of scientists in universities and research institutions in every State across America and around the world. The results of this investment are tangible. We have vaccines to protect us from cervical cancer, flu, shingles, and meningitis. Children diagnosed with leukemia now have a 90 percent chance of survival. Heart disease and stroke are on the decline, thanks to effective medicines and lifestyle changes.
The gains are impressive, but we face new challenges. America is getting older, and chronic diseases consume the vast majority of our health care dollars. Rising rates of obesity, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease threaten to reverse hard-fought longevity gains earned from our past medical research investment. Health disparities, a complex blend of genetics, the environment, individual behavior, and socioeconomics, remain a vexing problem that limits the reach of science discoveries to all Americans.
What’s more, expansive and routine global travel and communication have flattened our world, making it necessary to think without borders when it comes to our nation’s health. Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, as well as the threat of bioterrorism, require constant vigilance. With the help of the best scientific minds, NIH is meeting these challenges head-on.
Thirty years from now, we will look back and be amazed that we can regenerate lost or injured body parts, that we can tailor health outcomes with individualized prescriptions, that we can eliminate preventable deaths from lung diseases caused by smoking, that we can prevent Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other brain diseases that rob us of family and friends. To get there, we must meet today’s tough problems with creativity and diligence.
This is a remarkable time of discovery, and the opportunities in science and medicine are at once exciting and urgent. We are on the way to discovering new ways to cure disease, alleviating suffering, and preventing illness. By bringing the best science to the people who need it most, NIH is empowering Americans to embrace healthy living through informed decision-making. Job number-one for me is to be sure NIH can continue to make significant, lasting contributions to public health. This effort will change forever the health of ourselves, our families, our country, and the world.
Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.
Director, NIH