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Trump Talks Cancer Cures, 'Right to Try' as He Accepts GOP Presidential Nomination

— "We're going to get to the bottom of it"

MedpageToday
A photo of Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Donald Trump promised cures for cancer and other diseases when he accepted his party's presidential nomination Thursday night at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

"We will unleash the power of American innovation, and as we do, we will soon be on the verge of finding the cures to cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and many other diseases," the former president said during a speech that lasted about 90 minutes. "We're going to get to the bottom of it."

Although Biden claimed his administration would find the cure for cancer, "nothing happened," Trump continued. "We're going to get to the cure for cancer and Alzheimer's and so many other things. We're so close to doing something great, but we need a leader that will let it be done."

For the first time, Trump -- who wore a large, square white bandage over his injured ear -- also publicly discussed the assassination attempt against him that occurred last Saturday at a rally in Pennsylvania. He described hearing a loud "whizzing sound" as something hit him in the right ear. "I said to myself, 'Wow, what was that? It can only be a bullet.'"

Trump continued to say that when he brought his hand down from his ear "it was covered with blood. Just absolutely blood all over the place. I immediately knew it was very serious."

As to why his ear bled so profusely, "The ears are the bloodiest part. If something happens with the ears -- they bleed more than any other part of the body. For whatever reason the doctors told me that. And I said, 'Why is there so much blood?' [The doctors] said, 'It's the ears, they bleed more.'"

Turning to other topics related to healthcare, the former president said that "We will not have men playing in women's sports. That will end immediately."

Trump was not the only speaker who mentioned that issue. "These liberal senators want boys in girls' sports," said Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), chair of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee. "They want men in your daughters' and my daughters' locker room. They can't even define what a woman is. Back in Montana, we know the difference between a bull and a cow."

Trump's son Eric echoed a similar sentiment. "Male athletes, guys my height -- 6'5" -- are swimming in women's sports, destroying the dreams of young girls who have trained every minute of their lives," he said. Later, he touched on another healthcare issue, saying, "To families who can no longer afford medical benefits or take a vacation, I'm sorry. We will make America great again."

The former president also boasted about the success of the "" law that began during his administration. Right to Try, passed by Congress and signed by Trump in 2018, allows terminally ill patients to try unapproved drugs if the drugs have finished undergoing phase I testing, and if the patients meet other conditions.

"Insurance companies didn't want to do it -- they didn't want the risk," Trump said. "Labs didn't want to do it; doctors didn't want to do it. I got everybody into an office and got them to agree." However, under the law, insurers are not required to pay for the drugs, nor are manufacturers required to provide them.

Because of the law, "we're saving thousands and thousands of lives; it's incredible," he added. "It's a great feeling." The Right to Try law last year, according to Politico. And critics have questioned the effectiveness of the law because prior to its passage, who applied under an FDA program known as "" -- which requires that FDA grant permission for patients to get the drugs -- got their applications approved, usually immediately over the phone or within a few days.

President Biden's physical and mental fitness also grabbed some of the spotlight, even as Biden whether to drop out of the race. "Unfortunately, President Biden struts the global stage -- maybe I should say shuffles the global stage," said former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who served under Trump. "The truth is that Joe Biden can't handle that 3 a.m. phone call; indeed, he won't take a phone call after 4 p.m." Pompeo was referring to Biden's recent comments that he needed to and get more sleep.

Professional golfer John Nieporte, who worked for Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, praised Trump's prowess at golf. "I'm here to tell you Donald Trump is a great boss and one hell of a golfer," he said. "I've watched him hit a perfect 210-yard 4-iron within 10 feet of the hole. He needed to sink that putt to win. Do you think he sank it? You better believe he sunk that putt. Donald Trump: 21 golf championships; Joe Biden zero."

During the Trump-Biden presidential debate last month, at which Biden was generally thought to have performed poorly, the two men argued about which one of them was better at golf, with Biden saying he'd like to play golf with Trump "if you carry your own bag."

The opioid crisis also came up on Thursday evening. Steven Witkoff, a New York City developer and friend of Trump's, told the crowd, "When I lost my boy Andrew to an opioid overdose, the pain was unbearable, but as usual, Donald Trump showed up."

"After he became President Trump, amidst all of the responsibilities of his office, he reached out and invited me to speak at a conference on opioids hosted by the First Lady, providing me a platform to honor my son's memory," Witkoff continued. "When the day of the conference came, he went out of his way to put his hand on my shoulder and say, as he led me up to lectern, 'Steve, tell the world about your boy.'"

Political commentator Tucker Carlson also mentioned the opioid crisis, saying that he was finally driven out of Washington because lawmakers were "stepping over the prostrate bodies of their fellow citizens ODing on drugs to go cast votes to send money to some foreign country."

"We've lost more Americans from drugs in the past 4 years than we lost in World War II," he said. "Does anybody care? Do you hear a single word from Washington about doing anything about it? We know where the drugs are coming from. We know the supply routes ... You don't see our commander in chief suggesting that we use our military to protect our country, or the lives of its citizens. No! That's for Ukraine."

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    Joyce Frieden oversees ֱ’s Washington coverage, including stories about Congress, the White House, the Supreme Court, healthcare trade associations, and federal agencies. She has 35 years of experience covering health policy.