Noted

• President Obama released his budget proposal for fiscal year (FY) 2015, which recommends $30.2 billion for the NIH, a $300 million increase over the current funding level of $29.9 billion; the National Cancer Institute would receive a $2 million increase, bringing its budget to $4.931 billion. Even with the proposed increases, however, these amounts fall short of FY 2012 budgets.

• Attorneys general from 28 states and territories sent letters to five of America's largest retail chains, encouraging them to stop selling tobacco products in stores that have a pharmacy. Kroger, Rite Aid, Safeway, Walgreens, and Walmart were asked to consider following the example set by CVS Caremark, which announced in February that it will stop selling tobacco in its stores by October 1.

• The U.S. District Court for the District of Utah denied a request from Salt Lake City's Myriad Genetics and other patent holders for a preliminary injunction against Ambry Genetics to prevent it from selling tests to assess BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. Myriad filed suit against Ambry, of Aliso Viejo, CA, in July 2013, alleging that Ambry's tests infringed on patent claims that were not invalidated when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that genes cannot be patented because they are products of nature. Ambry can continue to offer its BRCA tests pending the lawsuit's outcome.

• The American Society of Clinical Oncology issued a comprehensive report on the cancer-related challenges facing the U.S. medical system. The State of Cancer Care in America: 2014 estimates that, due to an aging population, the number of cancer cases will increase by as much as 42% by 2025 while the number of oncologists will likely grow by just 28%, creating a shortage of nearly 1,500 doctors. In addition, the cost of cancer care, the report says, is likely to increase by 40% between 2010 and 2020.

• The European Parliament approved new rules to ban advertising for e-cigarettes beginning in mid-2016. E-cigarettes would also be required to carry graphic health warnings on their packaging, limit nicotine content, and be childproof.

For more news on cancer research, visit Cancer Discovery online at http://CDnews.aacrjournals.org.