President Obama & Vice President Biden Announce $1 Billion Jumpstart on Cancer Moonshot
Initiative Includes Friends of Cancer Research Proposal to Create Oncology Center of Excellence at FDA
Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) would like to applaud President Obama and Vice President Biden for their leadership and vision in launching the National Cancer Moonshot. Through today’s announcement of a $1 billion strategic initiative to launch this moonshot, the Administration has made clear its unwavering commitment to ending cancer.
The White House announcement creates a framework that builds upon the incredible oncology research taking place all across the country. Additionally, it finds ways to streamline and create a more collaborative ecosystem across all sectors to expedite scientific discovery with the ambitious goal of accomplishing a decades’ worth of advancements within five years.
This announcement outlines many important investments that will support cutting edge research opportunities across all federal health agencies. These investments will aim not only to find better treatments and make them safely available to patients faster, but to improve the ability to detect and prevent cancer at earlier stages.
We are extremely grateful to see such a strong commitment from the President and Vice President on enhancing the critical role that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plays in translating scientific discovery into therapies for patients.
In addition to directing $75 million in funding to the FDA, we are thrilled to see that the Administration heard our call to action from this past year and included a proposal to create a new, Oncology Center of Excellence at FDA as part of its initiative.
In an October 2015 op-ed, Friend’s chair and founder, Dr. Ellen V. Sigal, called on Congress to update FDA’s structure to better reflect 21st century science. The main ask was simple: create Centers of Excellence within FDA to improve coordination within and between FDA medical product centers and break down decades’ old silos within FDA and make for a more efficient agency. This will allow the agency to expedite the development of novel combination products, as well as support an integrated approach in product evaluation, support continued development of combination products, and develop and promote precision medicine methods.
“The President and Vice President’s dedication to patients and families impacted by cancer is truly inspiring,” said Dr. Ellen Sigal, Chair & Founder of Friends. “By investing in the FDA, and through the creation of a new Center of Excellence of Oncology, the Administration has taken a significant step that we hope will enhance the FDA’s ability to execute their vital role in translating scientific discovery into new therapies for patients.”
We look forward to continued collaboration with the President and Vice President as the details and execution of this initiative are further developed.
Full text of the White House Announcement on the National Cancer Moonshot initiative.
About Friends of Cancer Research
Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) is our country’s leading voice in advocating for policies and solutions that will get treatments to patients in the safest and quickest way possible. As a think tank and an advocacy organization based in Washington, DC, Friends develops groundbreaking partnerships and creates a more open dialogue among both public and private sectors and tears down the barriers that stand in the way of conquering cancer. Working with federal health agencies, congressional leadership, academic research centers, and private sector industry, Friends continues to create innovative educational, policy, and scientific approaches to improve health outcomes and cancer care. For more information please visit www.focr.org.
