Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies • Hacker News Board

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#61

Post by light_hue_1 » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:37 PM UTC

parsimo2010 wrote: post #46

(slightly sarcastic) So we should give rich people diseases so they are incentivized to fund medical research? Sid seems like a decent person. I'm glad that he's able to push cancer research forward on his own. Hopefully his work will make things better for everyone else with bone cancer. Seems like that is well under way. (and I guess I should recognize that he funded a cancer treatment company years before he knew…

>Not just the US medical system, but Europe and China also don't have better treatments until a rich guy came along. It seems that it's not for a lack of ideas, just that some of these ideas couldn't be funded. Is it that this type of bone cancer is super rare and the cost just isn't worth it? Or are we just under-funding at the level that several ideas with a likely positive ROI aren't able to get funded?

Cancer research, and all research in general, is massively underfunded. The US spends $7 billion dollars per year on the National Cancer Institute. The EU spends about as much as well. That's $14 billion per year for all cancer, never mind bone cancer. This just isn't a lot of money. That's like 6 days of running the US DoD. For cancer.

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#62

Post by goatlove » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

I found another story of using AI for a new vaccine the other day . https://x.com/paul_conyngham/status/2036940410363535823. Its interesting and motivating to see how people are using new technology to save lives regardless of their totally professional background and how informations are useful if you use it the right way. I wish him the best.

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#63

Post by elric » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:40 PM UTC

appstorelottery wrote: post #40

This is the most supremely motivating post I've seen in a long time. I know what it is to be diagnosed with cancer, being rushed to surgery - it's amazing how quickly the medical-industrial complex can move once you've got a diagnosis (at least in Australia). I had a short period of contemplating terminally, because cancer claimed the life of most of my family. Thankfully, after surgery it was gone. To see Sid use hi…

I commend you for speaking openly about Peyronie's, I imagine that isn't always an easy thing to do (or to deal with). Best of luck, and I hope you manage to make progress with it. Effective treatment wouldn't get as much airtime as effectice cancer treatments, but it would certainly have a positive effect on the lives of millions of men.

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#64

Post by croes » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:40 PM UTC

rvz wrote: post #52

croes wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So it was luck

Nope. He applied to YC and took that risk and already knew how to make money. You miss 100% of the shots if you do. not. try.

But you don’t hit 100% if you try. That’s where the luck part comes into play.

Right time, right place

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#65

Post by universa1 » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:45 PM UTC

moralestapia wrote: post #54

"maximum diagnostics" Love this! This is the way! And he proved it correct. I remember one time I mentioned this in a casual conversation only to get back very low IQ responses with some fatuous arguments that the tests caused the disease or something. There was this one guy Tomas something (can't remember the last name, a weird one), doesn't matter, what I do remember is how he was desperately trying to explain how…

I am fully on your side, but tests are not 100%: False positives and false negatives.

The way out is obviously better tests and not less tests :-)

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#66

Post by wyager » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:49 PM UTC

parsimo2010 wrote: post #46

(slightly sarcastic) So we should give rich people diseases so they are incentivized to fund medical research? Sid seems like a decent person. I'm glad that he's able to push cancer research forward on his own. Hopefully his work will make things better for everyone else with bone cancer. Seems like that is well under way. (and I guess I should recognize that he funded a cancer treatment company years before he knew…

The bottleneck isn't research funding, it's getting past the FDA

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#67

Post by 101008 » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 7:57 PM UTC

This is wonderful but I feel bad for all the people who doesnt have the resources to go through the same. For 99.9% of the population, a diagnostic like his means a really different outcome. I know he is trying to fix this with his investments and companies, but sharing this story could be seen as "boasting"... "I went through this and I survived, while your loved ones wouldn't"

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#68

Post by AlBugdy » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 8:08 PM UTC

moralestapia wrote: post #54

"maximum diagnostics" Love this! This is the way! And he proved it correct. I remember one time I mentioned this in a casual conversation only to get back very low IQ responses with some fatuous arguments that the tests caused the disease or something. There was this one guy Tomas something (can't remember the last name, a weird one), doesn't matter, what I do remember is how he was desperately trying to explain how…

[dead]

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#69

Post by PowerElectronix » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 8:09 PM UTC

melling wrote: post #48

parsimo2010 wrote: post #46

(slightly sarcastic) So we should give rich people diseases so they are incentivized to fund medical research? Sid seems like a decent person. I'm glad that he's able to push cancer research forward on his own. Hopefully his work will make things better for everyone else with bone cancer. Seems like that is well under way. (and I guess I should recognize that he funded a cancer treatment company years before he knew…

Why can’t we just ask our governments to spend more on research? Want some rich person to donate $100 billion on cancer research? The US government and European governments could find that amount of money every year.

We are not the bosses of the people in the government, so asking does very little.

Re: Founder of GitLab battles cancer by founding companies

#70

Post by allpratik » Sat, Mar 28, 2026, 8:10 PM UTC

Wish the best for Sid! My father was unlucky with his TP53 mutation which resulted in AEL and he passed away suddenly. 100% fit to vanishing away straight in 8 months. It was pretty rough for me especially to see how these doctors (most of them but bot all) are so non-experimental in their attitude.

Sid is right, Staying alive is our own job and definitely what he is doing will give him and his loved ones enough hope to get through this and sometimes he eventually he will get through.