Leaders at the American Cancer Society (ACS) as well as the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) recently announced that the agencies will increase their research funding by two times.
This amounts to a $1 billion rise in funds from the biggest private, not-for-profit financier of cancer research (ACS) and its advocacy affiliate (ACS CAN).
“The American Cancer Society is putting our stake in the ground to continue to be the leading nonprofit funder for cancer research,” Gary Reedy, CEO of ACS and ACS CAN, said. “We’re making a financial pledge that will challenge us and our supporters to step up, focus and deliver results at levels we’ve never done before. This is the kind of leadership and perseverance that must come from every sector of the cancer community -- from nonprofits to government to corporate and community leaders.”
This funding announcement is part of Vice President Joe Biden’s National Cancer Moonshot Summit. The goal is to stop cancer, which has killed 595,000 Americans this year alone.
“Congress can’t let this moment pass -- we’re on the cusp of so many new developments in diagnostic tests and treatments thanks to past investment that has allowed us to understand cancer at the molecular level,” Chris Hansen, president of ACS CAN, said. “Lifesaving cancer treatments have one thing in common: they begin with basic research led by the NIH and the NCI. Congress must continue the funding momentum if we are going to conquer cancer.”
