Frequently asked questions
about Survivors
What is Survivors?
Survivors is a new and innovative public education campaign,
developed to promote public appreciation and respect for
the vital role that biomedical research plays in advancing
veterinary medicine. The campaign’s goal is to strengthen
public understanding and support for America’s medical
research community.
What is the Foundation for Biomedical Research?
The Foundation
for Biomedical Research (FBR) is the nation’s
oldest and largest organization dedicated to improving human
and animal health by promoting public understanding and
support for the humane and responsible use of animals in
medical research. Established in 1981 and based in Washington
DC, FBR is the leading voice of scientific reason and medical
progress in the ongoing, sometimes violent debate that surrounds
the essential need for animals in medical research.
When will Survivors launch?
The campaign will launch in February of 2003 and continue
through to the end of summer.
Who is involved?
Dr. Theresa Fossum, a leading
animal surgeon and professor at Texas A&M University’s
College of Veterinary Medicine is the official spokesperson
for Survivors. Actress, singer and research advocate Dana
Reeve will also support Survivors. And Foundation President
Frankie L. Trull is the organization’s
spokesperson on all aspects of the animal research issue.
Why promote the role of research in veterinary medicine?
When Americans learn that biomedical research involving
animals improves animal health as well as human health,
public understanding and support for this vital research
increases.
Research is the foundation of all medical science, and
animals are the foundation of this research. Medical progress,
for human and animal health, requires research with animals
because there is no complete replacement for a living system
on which to conduct basic research. Animal studies provide
invaluable and irreplaceable insights into human systems
and for the study of animal health – there is no better
model than the animal.
Practically every present day protocol for the prevention,
control and cure of disease, and relief of pain, is based
on knowledge attained through research that involved lab
animals. The best hope for developing new preventions, therapies
and cures for diseases including cancer, HIV/AIDS, diabetes,
Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s is found in the
promise of medical research that includes animal studies.
Research with animals is also a legal obligation. Both the
Nuremburg Code and the Helsinki Declaration of Helsinki
outline provisions for research protocols to be conducted
with animals, before humans.
How can a person who deeply cares for animals still support
the research that includes animals?
The two concepts are not mutually exclusive – but
it is essential to distinguish between “animal rights”
and animal welfare. The research community supports animal
welfare, and works to guarantee the health and well-being
of all animals. Animal rights activists seek to end all
research involving animals – either because they choose
to reject its well established validity and usefulness,
or because they believe that the life of a rat is equal
in importance to the life of child. And they have gone to
shocking lengths to subvert medical and scientific progress.
Laboratories have been broken into, animals stolen and years
of valuable data destroyed. Though many animal rights organizations
refuse to condemn such criminal behavior, Americans should
not tolerate these illegal campaigns of intimidation and
threats against medical research and discovery.
Additional information about FBR
FBR’s board of governors is chaired by Dr.
Michael E. DeBakey, the president and chancellor of
Baylor College of Medicine, chancellor emeritus of the Michael
E. DeBakey Department of Surgery and director of the DeBakey
Heart Center in Houston, Texas. The recipient of 57 honorary
degrees, Dr. DeBakey is America's most honored physician.
Other governors on FBR's board include seven Nobel laureates,
12 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences,
13 fellows of the National Academy of Sciences and a former
Surgeon General.
Through its many programs and services, FBR seeks to engage
and inform the news media, teachers, students and the general
public about the essential need for animals in medical and
scientific research and discovery. It serves as an accessible,
reliable resource for the news media and works to bring
American journalists and scientists together to promote
exceptional and ongoing news coverage that contributes to
public appreciation and respect for the humane and responsible
use of animals in medical and scientific research.
As a nonprofit, tax-exempt public foundation under Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, FBR receives no
government funding and relies exclusively on private contributors
to underwrite the costs of its programs and services.
For more information, contact:
- Foundation for Biomedical Research: (202) 457-0654
Updated January 23, 2004 |
