{"id":2101966,"date":"2025-10-21T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/?post_type=article&#038;p=2101966"},"modified":"2025-10-22T11:01:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T15:01:08","slug":"cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Cancer Doesn\u2019t Care\u2019: Citizen Lobbyists Unite To Push Past Washington\u2019s Ugly Politics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of a memorial in downtown Washington D.C. Large letters that spell &quot;HOPE&quot; are illuminated as people walk around them.\" class=\"wp-image-2102009\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-010.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 3840px) 100vw, 3840px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Despite a steady rain, volunteers from across the country and the political spectrum converged on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., recently to remember people who have died of cancer, part of an annual volunteer fly-in organized by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Mary Catherine Johnson is a retired small-business owner from outside Rochester, New York. She voted for Donald Trump three times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<aside class=\"block--sidebar alignright \">\n\t\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-kaiser-health-news-partner block--partner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"partner__image--link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/shots-health-news\/2025\/10\/21\/nx-s1-5576978\/cancer-lobby-politics-patients-american-cancer-society-cancer-action-network\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"partner__image\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/07\/npr-hi-res-logo.png?w=120\" alt=\"Partner logo\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"partner__content\">\n\t\tThis story also ran on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/shots-health-news\/2025\/10\/21\/nx-s1-5576978\/cancer-lobby-politics-patients-american-cancer-society-cancer-action-network\">NPR<\/a>. It can be <a href=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/view\/republish\/\">republished for free<\/a>.\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/aside>\n\n\n\n<p>Lexy Mealing, who used to work in a physician\u2019s office, is from Long Island. She\u2019s a Democrat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But the women share a common bond. They both survived breast cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And when the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network organized its annual citizen lobby day in Washington last month, Johnson and Mealing were among the more than 500 volunteers pushing Congress to keep cancer research and support for cancer patients at the top of the nation\u2019s health care agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The day is something of a ritual for groups like the cancer organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"block--side-by-side-photo alignwide \">\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-columns side-by-side__columns\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-column side-by-side__column\" style=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-image side-by-side__block-image side-by-side__block-image--left\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"513\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?w=770&amp;h=513&amp;crop=1\" class=\"wp-image-2102013 size-khn-article-large attachment-khn-article-large\" alt=\"A portrait of an older woman wearing a blue shirt standing against a gray background.\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 781px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-02.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" \/><!-- image-left -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMary Catherine Johnson is a breast cancer survivor and former small-business owner. She lives outside Rochester, New York.\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-column side-by-side__column\" style=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-image side-by-side__block-image side-by-side__block-image--right\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"513\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?w=770&amp;h=513&amp;crop=1\" class=\"wp-image-2102014 size-khn-article-large attachment-khn-article-large\" alt=\"A portrait of a woman wearing a blue shirt standing against a brown background.\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 781px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-04.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" \/><!-- image-right -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLexy Mealing is a breast cancer survivor who lives on Long Island in New York. She used to work at a physician\u2019s office.\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"block--iframe\">\n\t<iframe\n\t\tallow=\"fullscreen\"\n\t\tframeborder=\"0\"\n\t\theight=\"230\"\n\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/player\/embed\/nx-s1-5574198\/nx-s1-9496868\"\n\t\twidth=\"100%\"\n\t><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div\n\tclass=\"wp-block block--newsletter  \"\n\tdata-type=\"kaiser-health-news\/newsletter\"\n\tdata-align=\"center\"\n\tstyle=\"\"\n>\n\t<h4 class=\"newsletter__title\">\n\t\t<a href=\"\/email\/\">\n\t\t\tEmail Sign-Up\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/h4>\n\t<p class=\"newsletter__description\">\n\t\tSubscribe to KFF Health News&#039; free Morning Briefing.\t<\/p>\n\t\n<form\n\taction=\"\/email-signup\/\"\n\tclass=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form\"\n\tmethod=\"post\"\n>\n\t<input type=\"hidden\" id=\"kaiser_hubspot_nonce\" name=\"kaiser_hubspot_nonce\" value=\"00b79a3908\" \/><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"_wp_http_referer\" value=\"\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/2101966\" \/>\t\t\t\t<label\n\t\tclass=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form__label--email\"\n\t\tfor=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form-email\"\n\t>\n\t\t<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">\n\t\t\tYour Email Address\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<input\n\t\t\tautocomplete=\"email\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form__input--email\"\n\t\t\tid=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form-email\"\n\t\t\tname=\"kaiser_hubspot_email\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"email\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tplaceholder=\"Your email address\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\/>\n\t<\/label>\n\t<button class=\"kaiser-hubspot-mini-signup-form__submit\">\n\t\tSign Up\t<\/button>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>This year, it came as Democrats and Republicans in Washington slid toward a budget impasse that shut down the federal government. But these volunteers transcended their political differences and found common ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNot one person here discussed if you\u2019re a Democrat, if you\u2019re a Republican,\u201d said Mealing, one of 27 volunteers in the New York delegation. \u201cCancer doesn\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every one of the volunteer lobbyists had been touched in some way by the deadly disease, which is expected to kill <a href=\"https:\/\/seer.cancer.gov\/statfacts\/html\/common.html\">more than 600,000<\/a> people in the U.S. this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Johnson said each of her mother\u2019s 10 siblings died from cancer, as did a lifelong friend who died at age 57, leaving behind his wife and two young daughters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like many of the New York volunteers, Johnson also said she\u2019s worried about the state of politics today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI think we\u2019re probably the most divided that we\u2019ve ever been,\u201d she said. \u201cThat scares me. Scares me for my grandchildren.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Katie Martin, a cancer volunteer from outside Buffalo, also worries. She and her daughter recently drove past political protesters screaming at one another on the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u200a\u201cMy daughter is silent and then starts asking, \u2018What is this?\u2019 And I don&#8217;t know how to explain it, because it doesn\u2019t even make sense to me,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s very heartbreaking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg\" alt=\"A portrait of a woman wearing a blue shirt standing against a gray background.\" class=\"wp-image-2102015\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-03.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 3840px) 100vw, 3840px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Katie Martin lost a close friend to cancer. She is a family law attorney from outside Buffalo, New York.<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Mealing said she can barely watch the news these days. \u201cA lot of Americans are very stressed out. There\u2019s a lot of things going on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Americans are indeed split over many issues \u2014 immigration, guns, President Trump. But helping people with cancer and other serious illnesses retains broad bipartisan support, polls show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In <a href=\"https:\/\/unitedforcures.org\/national-poll-release\">one recent survey<\/a>, 7 in 10 voters said it\u2019s very important for the federal government to fund medical research. That included majorities of Democrats and Republicans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s rare in today\u2019s environment to see numbers like that,\u201d said Jarrett Lewis, a Republican pollster who conducted the survey for patient groups. \u201cBut almost everybody in this country knows somebody who\u2019s had cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Similarly, a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/affordable-care-act\/kff-health-tracking-poll-public-weighs-political-consequences-of-health-policy-legislation\/\">KFF poll<\/a> found that three-quarters of U.S. adults, including most Republicans who align with the Make America Great Again, or MAGA, movement, want Congress to extend subsidies that help Americans buy health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These subsidies, which are critical to people with chronic illnesses such as cancer, are among the main sticking points in the current budget impasse in Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As the cancer volunteers gathered in a conference hotel in Washington, they focused on their shared agenda: increasing funding for cancer research, retaining insurance subsidies, and expanding access to cancer screening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe may not see eye to eye politically. We might not even see eye to eye in social circumstances,\u201d said Martin, the Buffalo-area volunteer. \u201cBut we can see beyond those differences because we\u2019re here for one cause.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"block--side-by-side-photo alignwide \">\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-columns side-by-side__columns\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-column side-by-side__column\" style=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-image side-by-side__block-image side-by-side__block-image--left\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"770\" height=\"513\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?w=770&amp;h=513&amp;crop=1\" class=\"wp-image-2102019 size-khn-article-large attachment-khn-article-large\" alt=\"An up-close photograph of white paper bags with messages of hope and remembrance for people with cancer.\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 781px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-08.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" \/><!-- image-left -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAmerican Cancer Society Cancer Action Network volunteers from all 50 states decorated about 10,000 white paper bags with messages of hope and remembrance for people with cancer.\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-column side-by-side__column\" style=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-block-image side-by-side__block-image side-by-side__block-image--right\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg\" class=\"wp-image-2102020 size-full attachment-full\" alt=\"A photograph of a path alongside a body of water. The path is lit with white paper bags that are memorials for people who passed from cancer.\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 781px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-06.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" \/><!-- image-right -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAfter visiting lawmakers on Capitol Hill, hundreds of volunteers for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network gathered for a candlelight vigil at Constitution Gardens along the National Mall in Washington. Each state had a pillar commemorating a past volunteer who died of cancer.\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The state delegations practiced the pitches they would make to their members of Congress. They ran through the personal stories they would share. And they swapped tips for how to deal with resistant staff and how to ask for a photo with a lawmaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the morning of their lobby day, they reconvened in a cavernous ballroom, decked out in matching blue polo shirts and armed with red information folders to leave at each office they would visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They got a pep talk from a pair of college basketball coaches. Then they headed across town to Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The army of volunteers \u2014 from every state in the country \u2014 hit 484 of the 535 Senate and House offices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not every visit was an unqualified victory. Many Republican lawmakers object to extending the insurance subsidies, arguing they\u2019re too costly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But lawmakers from both parties have backed increased research funding and support for more cancer screening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And the New Yorkers felt good about the day. \u201cIt was amazing,\u201d Mealing said as the day wrapped up. \u201cYou could just feel the sense of, \u2018Everybody stronger together.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When evening came, the volunteers met on the National Mall for a candlelight vigil. It was raining. Bagpipes played.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Around a pond near the Lincoln Memorial, some 10,000 tea lights glimmered in little paper bags. Each luminary had a name on it \u2014 a life touched by cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg\" alt=\"A portrait of an older man wearing a blue shirt against a grey background.\" class=\"wp-image-2102008\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg 3840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=500,333 500w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=1270,847 1270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=770,513 770w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=840,560 840w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=720,480 720w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=570,380 570w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=370,247 370w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=270,180 270w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=170,113 170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=100,67 100w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=120,80 120w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=1170,780 1170w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=200,134 200w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=315,210 315w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=630,420 630w, https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-01.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 3840px) 100vw, 3840px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">John Manna, whose father died of lung cancer, is a retired attorney who lives in New York\u2019s Hudson Valley.<span class=\"photo-credit\">(Charlotte Kesl for KFF Health News)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>John Manna, another New Yorker, is a self-described Reagan Republican whose father died from lung cancer. He reflected on the lessons this day could offer a divided nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTalk to people,\u201d he said. \u201cGet to know each other as people, and then you can understand somebody\u2019s positions. \u200aWe have little disagreements, but, you know, we don\u2019t attack each other. We talk and discuss it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Manna said he would be back next year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Despite a poisonous political climate, hundreds of volunteer advocates put partisan differences aside and pressed Congress to help people with cancer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":2101972,"template":"","meta":{"_cr_original_post":"","_cr_replace_post_id":"","_cr_replacing_post_id":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"kff_featured_video":0,"kff_show_featured_video":false,"kff_show_mute_audio_button":false,"custom_shortlink":"\/MjEwMTk2Ng","kaiser_health_news_byline_override":"","kaiser_health_news_can_republish":true,"kaiser_health_news_featured_image_caption":"","kaiser_health_news_header_overlay_color":"","kaiser_health_news_header_theme_slug":"","kaiser_health_news_hero_image":0,"kaiser_health_news_backdrop_padding":115,"kaiser_health_news_hide_partner":false,"kaiser_health_news_kicker":"","kaiser_health_news_kicker_background_color":"","kaiser_health_news_kicker_text_color":"","kaiser_health_news_kicker_url":"","kaiser_health_news_nav_theme_slug":"compact","kaiser_health_news_nav_transparency":false,"kaiser_health_news_sharing_title":"","kaiser_health_news_show_featured_image":false,"kaiser_health_news_subheadline":"","kaiser_health_news_suppress_kicker":false,"kaiser_health_news_suppress_subheadline":false,"kaiser_health_news_update_time":"","kaiser_health_news_vertical_image":0,"kaiser_health_news_title_align_left":false,"kaiser_health_news_custom_header_image":2102009,"photo_byline":[],"story_update":"","update_position":"bottom","kaiser_syndication_sites":[],"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-10-21T09:09:21Z","apple_news_api_id":"770bfbf0-47e9-4eb6-9d0f-cf225f169c20","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-10-22T15:01:14Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAw==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/Adwv78EfpTradD88iXxacIA","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":["https:\/\/news-api.apple.com\/sections\/20265c01-23d7-4d15-96e0-0691b89c3772"],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[178379,4755,28006,36835],"tags":[439524403,4252,439530304,4614,439524171,303322937],"primary-topic":[],"partners":[439524320],"funder":[],"coauthors":[439528373],"class_list":["post-2101966","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-industry","category-multimedia","category-public-health","category-syndicate","tag-audio","tag-cancer","tag-common-ground","tag-new-york","tag-trump-administration","tag-congress","partners-npr"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>\u2018Cancer Doesn\u2019t Care\u2019: Citizen Lobbyists Unite To Push Past Washington\u2019s Ugly Politics - KFF Health News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Despite a poisonous political climate, hundreds of volunteer advocates put partisan differences aside and pressed Congress to help people with cancer.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Cancer Doesn\u2019t Care\u2019: Citizen Lobbyists Unite To Push Past Washington\u2019s Ugly Politics - KFF Health News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Despite a poisonous political climate, hundreds of volunteer advocates put partisan differences aside and pressed Congress to help people with cancer.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KFF Health News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-22T15:01:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/10\/Common-ground-cancer-grid.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"3840\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/kffhealthnews.org\/news\/article\/cancer-common-ground-citizen-lobbyists-washington-dc\/\",\"name\":\"\u2018Cancer Doesn\u2019t Care\u2019: Citizen Lobbyists Unite To Push Past Washington\u2019s Ugly Politics - 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