Science funding. The National Advisory Environmental Health Sciences Council.

(Editor's Note: Following is a reprint ofa letter sent to Donna Shalala, secretary of the Department ofHealth and Human Services, on 9June 1995.) The budget now under consideration in the Congress for the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences would indefensibly threaten environmental health protection for America. For millions of Americans the environment is a major determinant of their health, and for the quarter-century that it has existed, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences has been the first line of defense against these threats. Its record of success is unsurpassed among the National Institutes of Health. Now, as an increasing number of disorders ranging from premature births to a wide variety of cancers, appear to have an environmental cause or component, a fully funded NIERS is essential. NIEHS is unique among the institutes. By focusing its research efforts on the health impacts of environmental exposures, ranging from air pollution to food additives , NIEHS provides cross-cutting support to the other institutes and a wide range of regulatory agencies. There is no question that NIEHS-supported research has improved the quality of life in response to a deep and abiding commitment by the public to environmental protection. Moreover, NIEHS programs have been instrumental in making the United States the world's leader in biomedical research, providing a foundation for the nation's expanding, highly profitable biotechnology industry. One of the more prominent NIEHS researchers is a Nobel laureate, and most are world leaders in their field of inquiry. NIEHS-sponsored research is opening the door to an understanding of the molecular and cellular-level mechanisms by which diseases and disorders are caused, making it possible to develop methods of prevention and treatment for all illnesses, not just those with environmental causes. For example, within the last year alone, NIEHS researchers have discovered the gene that causes breast cancer and another that is associated with metastasis of cancer of the prostate. Most importantly, literally every American, especially our children and elderly , is today safer and healthier because of research supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Collectively, this reduction in the nation's burden of illness due to environmental exposures has been cost effective by virtually any measure. Consider, for example, that: * NIEHS research on the effects of lead on children's nervous systems caused it to be removed from gasoline, safeguarding the intelligence of American children. Other research associating lead with elevated blood …