<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Iowa Republican Zach Lahn outlined a vision for collaborating with biotechnology companies on cancer prevention and early detection as part of his campaign platform in the upcoming governor’s race in November.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lahn, whose campaign has focused on Iowa’s increasing cancer rates, moderated a panel on future cancer treatments on Tuesday at the MAHA Summit, hosted by the MAHA Center at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington, D.C.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lahn emphasized the need for state policymakers to utilize biotechnology for both cancer prevention and early detection to enhance treatment effectiveness.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“We need to work on prevention, there’s no doubt about it,” Lahn stated. “But a lot of these people have had the environmental exposures for decades and decades that are putting them at the highest amount of risk. And so pulling a large lever by working with technologies like this in a state, I think, would be a huge advantage to the people there to create a model of how other states can do it.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The University of Iowa estimated in March that there will be 21,700 new cancer diagnoses in Iowa this year and 6,400 new cancer deaths. Nearly 6% of Iowa's population has either had cancer or is currently battling some form of the disease.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Several environmental factors contribute to Iowa’s cancer rates. Nearly 72% of homes in the state exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s safe level of radon, which is the leading cause of lung cancer for nonsmokers.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Iowa’s wastewater treatment companies also face challenges in maintaining nitrate levels in drinking water below EPA standards, partly due to pollution from fertilizer and pesticide runoff.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lahn shared during the panel that his father battled non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a type of cancer linked to the agricultural pesticide glyphosate, the active ingredient in RoundUp.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">When discussing his father’s treatment, Lahn expressed surprise at the traditional cancer treatment protocol, which often involves enduring harsh therapies and hoping for the best, without changes to lifestyle or diet, despite their known impacts.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lahn spoke with Josh Ofman, CEO of GRAIL, a company that offers a blood test screening for over 50 types of cancer by detecting tumor DNA fragments in the bloodstream. Jonathan Swerdlin of Function Health and supplement maker Dr. Eric Berg were also part of the panel.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Ofman stated that it is possible to “eradicate late-stage cancer, metastatic disease in our lifetimes” if early cancer detection and preventive screenings for risk factors, such as insulin resistance, can be scaled effectively.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“Cancer can really be the case study for this transition from a break-it-and-fit healthcare system to one where we can do prediction, prevention, and early detection,” Ofman added.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Polling indicates that Democratic candidate Rob Sand is 6.3 percentage points ahead of Lahn, according to an average of recent polls by RealClearPolling. The latest Marist Poll from late last week shows Sand leading Lahn by 12 percentage points.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lahn, who received an early endorsement from the political action committee MAHA Action, was not present at a recent Oval Office event with President Donald Trump announcing a new steel plant in Lee County, Iowa. Other Republican candidates, including Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Senate candidate Rep. Ashley Hinson, attended the event.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">A source familiar with the matter confirmed to the Washington Examiner that Lahn was at a fundraising event and could not attend the White House announcement.</p>