"voting with the wallet" This is why research grants and outright government spending is a good tool in the toolbox. People are still paying for it through tax

"voting with the wallet" This is why research grants and outright government spending is a good tool in the toolbox. People are still paying for it through taxes, but because of the indirect nature we can judge the problem a bit more on its merits ("of course we want cancer research to happen and be funded")