In May 2025, Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed House Bill 1453. The new law establishes the breast cancer research fund and pediatric cancer research and treatment fund. These new grant programs support innovative and novel therapies for breast and pediatric cancer. The specialized funding combines state and federal grants with support from other sources.
Unspent funds from the programs do not revert to the state’s general budget at the end of the fiscal year to be reappropriated. Instead, they stay in a dedicated accounts to be used specifically for the two funds. This bill also gives the Indiana Department of Health the authority to develop criteria for grant eligibility and application. This bill mirrors the successes of the National Cancer Act of 1971 (NCA). Just as the NCA places grant review within the NCI, House Bill 1453 puts grant review in the hands of the state’s health department, helping to ensure that experts determine where cancer funding goes
The bill also promotes consistency in cancer research, which is at its best when scientists reliably know how much funding it can expect each fiscal year. With Indiana seeing on average 300 new cases of cancer in children every year and over 4,900 cases of breast cancer, this bill will not only help the residents of Indiana but also has broader implications for the rest of the country, giving the state an opportunity to become a national leader in biomedical research.