TAMPA, Fla. — First Lady Dr. Jill Biden paid a visit Friday to Tampa's Moffitt Cancer Center to meet with health experts about the White House's latest initiative to fight the disease.
It's called the "Cancer Moonshot" initiative, and it aims to cut the cancer death rate in half over the next 25 years and improve the experiences of people living with cancer.
"It has stolen our joy. It left us broken in our grief but through that pain, we found purpose," the first lady said earlier this month when President Biden announced the initiative.
The president's son, Beau, died of brain cancer in 2015 at age 46. Joe Biden launched the program one year later, when he was vice president.
The first lady's trip to Tampa marks the first state visit since the "Cancer Moonshot" initiative was announced. She was joined by National Cancer Institute Director Dr. Ned Sharpless during her trip.
Moffitt is Florida's only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, recognizing it as being a top facility for scientific discoveries and promising cancer treatments. On its website, it describes being a pioneer in medical advancements like CAR T-cell therapy.
Late last year, Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis, who is battling breast cancer herself, announced funding of $100 million for cancer research in the governor's 2022 budget proposal.
DeSantis shared how cancer has impacted her family, pushed for early screenings and said that while great innovative treatments are out there, “we even need to go a little bit further.”