By Dr. Michael Cruz As a surgeon who has devoted much of my career to breast oncologic surgery, I have stood beside hundreds of women and families facing one of life’s most difficult diagnoses — breast cancer. My decision to specialize in this field was deeply personal. My own mother was diagnosed at an early age with aggressive Stage III breast cancer. She fought bravely and survived, reminding me — and all who knew her — that breast cancer is not automatically a death sente

Now remember: the CNMI economy is tourism-based. Most, if not almost all, businesses in the Commonwealth are affected by this prolonged and persistent downturn in tourism. CNMI government revenue, not surprisingly, is also down. The only thing that prevented the Commonwealth’s financial collapse were the ARPA and other federal emergency assistance funds from the Covid days. That funding source is either depleted already or about to be gone. And then what?