Biden Cancer Initiative Suspended During Campaign

The Biden Cancer Initiative has suspended its operations indefinitely, according to a statement released Monday.

The independent, nonprofit organization was founded by Joe Biden, former vice president and current 2020 Democratic presidential candidate in June 2017.

“Today, we are suspending activities given our unique circumstances,” Greg Simon, president of the Biden Cancer Initiative, said in the statement. “We remain personally committed to the cause, but at this time will have to pause efforts.”

Biden and his wife, Jill, who holds a doctorate in education, were committed to ending cancer “as we know it.” Their son, Beau, died of brain cancer in 2015 at age 46. Biden led former President Barack’s Obama’s Cancer Moonshot program, which was an endeavor to fast-track a cure for cancer, and created the Biden Cancer Initiative as the philanthropic extension of it.

The nonprofit promoted nearly 60 partnerships with drug companies, health care firms, charities and other organizations that pledged more than $400 million to improve cancer treatment, reported the Associated Press.

Before joining the 2020 presidential campaign, Biden and his wife decided to leave the group’s board for ethical reasons and to avoid any conflict of interest. Since their parting from the group in April, the Biden Cancer Initiative has had difficulty maintaining momentum without their involvement, reported the Associated Press. The initiative relied on health care world partnerships to expedite finding a cure for cancer.

The Biden Cancer Initiative will maintain three board members during its hiatus and would not have to re-incorporate if the Bidens decided to revive the organization based on federal nonprofit rules, Simon told the Associated Press.

“We thank the community for their incredible response to our mission to improve the cancer journey for patients and to improve outcomes for all patients for generations to come,” Simon said.

An original version of this article, "Biden Cancer Initiative Suspends Operations Indefinitely," was published on CureToday.com.