Cancer moonshot. 2.

The cancer 'moonshot' is an enormous monetary injection into cancer research (the 'war' on cancer, likened to the race to the moon in the 1960s) which was launched by President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. Dr Graham Easton investigates this initiative and the attitude towards cancer research. Biden wants an interdisciplinary approach to treat and cure cancer. Professors Nick Jones and Peter Jones of Cancer Research U. K. give an insight to the improvements and stagnations in medical technology over the last thirty years, commenting on the changing survival rates. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the home and the attitudes of patients are all discussed in terms of their effect on numbers of cancer survivors. As technologies become more advanced and financially affordable, changes in cancer diagnoses have taken place. Dr Douglas Lowry discusses the homogeneity and individuality of cancer cells, in the fight against the disease, alongside immunotherapy and synthetic targeting of cells. Dr Nancy Davidson speaks in detail about the development in vaccination. A patient of immunotherapy shares the experience of taking part in a successful drug trial. Experts reveal concerns about the reliability of these drugs and express optimism towards the future of cancer management and cure. Professor Thomas Tucker highlights economic issues of these ambitions.