AACR: Advances in cancer research, medical funding allow for ‘phenomenal’ progress

Michael A. Caligiuri

George D. Demetri

Oncology leaders who participated in an American Association for Cancer Research webinar this afternoon highlighted several advances in cancer research and emphasized the importance of robust medical research funding.

Webinar participants also provided updates on the seventh annual AACR Cancer Progress Report, released last month. The report — titled “Harnessing Research Discoveries to Save Lives” — provided a snapshot of cancer progress this year, and also offered recommendations to increase public understanding and advocate for increased federal funding.

“The driver for this is cancer research, and we’re going to talk about how we go from that basic research to groundbreaking drugs that are now allowing us this phenomenal progress,” Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, president of AACR, director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and CEO of the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, said during the webinar.

Highlights of cancer progress

The report highlighted the following advances:

The U.S. cancer death rate declined by 35% from 1991 to 2014 for children and by 25% for adults. These reductions translate to 2.1 million cancer deaths averted;
From Aug. 1, 2016, to July 31, 2016, the FDA approved nine new anticancer drugs, new uses for eight previously approved drugs and an optical imaging agent to help visualize gliomas and ensure more complete surgical resection; and
Total U.S. adult cigarette consumption decreased by 38.7% from 2000 to 2015.

“What is important to understand is the partnership between basic research and patients willing to enlist in clinical trials,” Caligiuri said. “That sum is what really leads us to these remarkable FDA approvals. It really takes a whole continuum, starting from the laboratory, all the way through clinical care.”

Caligiuri emphasized the volume of FDA approvals.

“This kind of progress is truly remarkable,” he said. “There have been years there were very few, if any, drugs approved for cancer. What you see now is phenomenal.”

He also lauded the use of big data, including sources such as Project Genomics Evidence Neoplasia Information Exchange (GENIE) and the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN).

However, Caligiuri noted there is more work to be done.

The report highlighted several challenges. Among them:

More than 600,920 people in the United States are projected to die of cancer in 2017;
The number of new cases of cancer in the United States is predicted to increase from 1.7 million in 2017 to 2.3 million in 2030;
HPV vaccination could prevent nearly all cases of cervical cancer, but only 63% of girls and less than 50% of boys had received at least one dose of HPV vaccine in 2015; and
It is estimated that the direct medical costs of cancer care in the United States in 2014 totaled nearly $87.6 billion. This number — which does not include the indirect costs of lost productivity due to cancer-related morbidity and mortality — stands in stark contrast to the budget of $30.1 billion that the NIH received that same year.

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“This is because the population is aging, as well as smoking, obesity and other risk factors,” Caligiuri said. “What is startling is that 50% of global cancers can be prevented.”

Caligiuri also addressed health disparities related to racial and ethnic minority groups; ancestry; low socioeconomic status; lack of or limited access to health coverage; certain geographic locations; immigrants; LGBTQ individuals; refugees or asylum seekers; disabilities; adolescents and young adults; and the elderly.

“It isn’t just diagnosing cancer and treating [it], it is also considering who you are, where you are, your wealth [and] geography,” he added. “All of these things seem to impact and create barriers for cancer. Importantly, during my presidential initiative, we are going to study 2,020 genomes from African American patients to see [whether] there are genetic differences. If this is successful, of course, we’ll move on to other underrepresented populations.”

Medical research funding

“All of this really depends upon research that is driven by the curiosity of investigators to find new clues about cancer, and ultimately the most innovative clues are funded — not by industry, but by basic research at NIH and NCI,” George D. Demetri, MD, chair of AACR Science Policy and Government Affairs Subcommittee, as well as director of Center for Sarcoma and Bone Oncology and senior vice president for experimental therapeutics at Dana-Farber Cancer Center, said during the webinar. “To continue this kind of progress, it is essential that the NIH and NCI continue to receive robust, sustained and predictable funding from Congress.”

For fiscal year 2018, the AACR report called upon Congress to:

Continue to support robust, sustained and predictable growth of the NIH budget by providing a $2 billion increase for NIH, for a total funding level of $36.2 billion;
Ensure fully appropriated funding designated through the 21st Century Cures Act for initiatives and programs, such as the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot and the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence;
Increase the FDA budget to $2.8 billion — an $80 million increase above its 2017 level — to ensure support for regulatory science and to accelerate the pace of development of safe and effective medical products; and
Negotiate a bipartisan budget deal to raise the discretionary budget caps for 2018 and beyond.

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However, Demetri highlighted the ongoing momentum that has already occurred in medical funding.

For example, despite more than a dozen years of flat funding, the House of Representatives and Senate have shown strong bipartisan support for NIH over the past 2 years. In addition, Congress has provided a $2 billion increase for NIH — a 13% increase over 2 years — as well as proposed increases from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees for the fiscal year 2018.

The 21st Century Cures Act and the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot — which has provided $1.8 billion over 7 years — support these efforts.

“The scientific opportunities are all there, but they need [patients’] voices to show that [they] are in support of this, as well,” Demetri said.

To support these efforts, he recommended to get involved in AACR resources, including the AACR Cancer Policy Monitor, a biweekly newsletter; the AACR ENGAGE website; the AACR Advocates Facebook group; and the AACR Scientist-Survivor Program.

In addition, Demetri recommended individuals get connected with elected officials through newsletters and social media, and also request an in-district meeting with members of Congress.

“What we would like to do is encourage you to educate yourselves,” he added. “Advocacy makes a difference. Cancer research is strong, and only getting stronger, as we continue to save the lives of millions of patients in our country and across the world.”

For more information, visit www.cancerprogressreport.com. by Kristie L. Kahl