This is an incredibly exciting time for the cancer community.
In the United States, overall cancer incidence and death rates
are declining, and an increasing number of people are living
longer, higher-quality lives after a cancer diagnosis. This
progress has been made possible by individuals working
across the continuum of cancer research from basic to
translational to clinical and population research who are
harnessing discoveries to drive advances across the clinical
cancer care spectrum and save an increasing number of
lives from cancer.
The AACR Cancer Progress Report 2017 provides a
comprehensive overview of the progress we are making
because of research, much of which is supported by
federal investments in the National Institutes of Health
(NIH) including the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
As highlighted in the report, the pace at which we
have harnessed decades of basic research in the field of
immunology to develop lifesaving immunotherapeutics in
the clinic has been particularly rapid. For example, there has
been a surge in the number of types of cancer for which the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved
immunotherapeutics that work by releasing brakes on
the natural cancer-killing power of the immune system.
In January 2015, they were approved for treating just one
type of cancer. As of July 31, 2017, they were approved for
treating seven different types of cancer and for treating
any type of solid tumor characterized by the presence of a
specific molecular signature, or biomarker.
The first ever approval of a therapeutic to treat cancer based
solely on its molecular alterations rather than the site of
origin was made possible by the remarkable progress in our
understanding of cancer biology. As we step further into
the era of precision medicine, deepening of our knowledge
of the basic molecular underpinnings of cancer will
undoubtedly lead to more biomarker-based therapeutics,
providing hope for many cancer patients who are awaiting
more effective treatment options.
Expanding our wealth of genomic data by analyzing
many more patient samples will allow us to make even
more advances for patients with cancer around the world.
However, the collection, harmonization, and analysis of
datasets large enough to achieve these transformational
advances will require collaboration and data sharing on an
unprecedented scale. Among the new initiatives leading
collaborative efforts to generate big data is AACR Project
Genomics, Evidence, Neoplasia, Information, Exchange
(GENIE). In January 2017, the AACR Project GENIE
consortium publicly released nearly 19,000 de-identified
genomic records collected from patients who were treated
at the eight participating institutions. The goal of this
data release is to catalyze new clinical and translational
research that will significantly enhance the future utility
of precision medicine.
Despite the significant progress made against the many
diseases we call cancer, there is a vital need for continued
research innovation. This urgency is underscored by the
sobering reality that the 5-year relative survival rates for
U.S. patients diagnosed with some types of cancer, such as
liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, or the aggressive form of
brain cancer with which Senator John McCain was recently
diagnosed, glioblastoma, have not improved significantly
over the past several decades.
Moving forward, we also need to ensure that everyone
benefits from the groundbreaking advances that are being
made against cancer. Cancer can strike anyone—no age,
gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or political
affiliation makes you immune to this devastating disease.
However, as the report shows, past advances have not
benefited everyone equally, and certain segments of the
population, such as underrepresented minorities, shoulder
a disproportionate burden of cancer. This is unacceptable
and it is imperative that all stakeholders in the research
community work together to more fully understand the
reasons for cancer health disparities and then immediately
develop and implement plans to eliminate them.
We now have the scientific knowledge and capability to
deliver advances across the continuum of cancer care that
were previously unimaginable and will help us save more
lives from cancer. Given that in fiscal year (F Y) 2016 and F Y
2017, the NIH received from Congress its first consecutive,
significant funding increases in more than a decade, it is
clear that there is also a strong, bipartisan commitment
to invest in cancer research and biomedical science on
Capitol Hill at a level required to realize the goal of defeating
cancer sooner.
Ensuring that biomedical science remains a top priority for
our nation’s policy makers is vital if we are to continue and
accelerate our current pace of progress. Thus, the AACR
urges Congress to negotiate a bipartisan budget deal to raise
the discretionary budget caps for F Y 2018. The shortsighted
and restrictive discretionary spending caps that are in
place for FY 2018 as a result of the 2011 Budget Control
Act will jeopardize the opportunity for the NIH, NCI, and
FDA to receive robust, sustained, and predictable annual
funding increases in FY 2018 and beyond, and thereby
A MESSAGE
FROM
THE AACR
