DeSantis Opens $70 Million Cancer Innovation Grant Window
At an Orlando press conference Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced applications for $70 million in cancer innovation grants and highlighted new awardees, tying the push to First Lady Casey DeSantis’ breast-cancer experience.
He said Florida has put more than $1.4 billion into cancer research and treatment since 2019, with research funding up more than 175%, and nearly $228 million committed for FY 2026-27.
The Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program alone is described at $127.5 million for NCI centers including Moffitt, UF Health, Sylvester, and Mayo.
American Cancer Society projections cited in the story put Florida second nationally in new 2026 cases (~183,100) and more than 50,000 Florida cancer deaths.
Health Secretary Joseph Ladapo praised the research priority at the Orlando event.
Citrus County Confirms Locally Acquired Dengue Case
Florida Department of Health in Citrus County confirmed a locally acquired dengue case on Saturday, Aug. 22, and said it is coordinating stepped-up mosquito work with Citrus County Mosquito Control.
Response plans include more truck fogging, aerial larviciding, and ground checks for breeding sites. Officials stress dengue spreads via infected Aedes aegypti bites, not person to person, with flu-like fever, muscle/joint pain, and sometimes rash usually within about 14–15 days.
Guidance for residents: long sleeves and pants, EPA-registered repellent, dump standing water, and fix screens. DOH continues statewide mosquito-borne surveillance (West Nile, EEE, St. Louis encephalitis, malaria, chikungunya, dengue).
Anyone with symptoms should contact a health provider. Coverage confirms one locally acquired Citrus case; do not treat as a statewide outbreak tally.
Investigation: Florida Immigration Database Tops 30,000 Suspect Entries
A joint probe by Suncoast Searchlight, Florida Trident, and WGCU found Florida’s FDLE “suspected unauthorized alien encounters” system—launched with the State Board of Immigration Enforcement in August 2025—has grown past 30,000 entries. Local officers upload names, photos, addresses, and other details on people they merely suspect lack legal status.
Reporters reviewed more than 10,000 consecutive encounter reports over about four and a half months. More than 80% of people logged had no known criminal record; about nine in 10 were men. Entries include hundreds of minors and cases where officers could not confirm basic citizenship details.
The story walks through a Manatee County stop of Jean Gustave, who held Temporary Protected Status and was not charged that night, yet had his information uploaded; reporters later learned he had been deported. Civil-rights attorneys argue some holds by untrained local officers for ICE are unlawful.
Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, on the State Immigration Board, urged agencies not to post “goose eggs” on monthly reporting. Polk Sheriff Grady Judd has warned about impacts on productive residents. ICE pointed questions to FDLE; FDLE did not answer reporters’ questions on use, retention, or sharing.
SpaceX Targets Early Tuesday Starlink Launch From Cape Canaveral
Space Coast Daily reports SpaceX is aiming for Tuesday, Aug. 25, to loft 29 Starlink satellites on a Falcon 9 from SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, with a window from 1:49 a.m. to 5:49 a.m. ET and a droneship landing planned on A Shortfall of Gravitas.
That follows Friday’s Starlink 10-39 liftoff at 11:14 a.m. EDT from the same pad—29 more Starlinks after a Thursday scrub—on booster B1078’s 30th flight, with a successful droneship recovery.
Coverage outlets note the Aug. 25 flight would be the supporting booster’s 37th mission.
Launch windows can slip; confirm Tuesday morning before final lock. |
