America opens new front in the war against cancer

[babsbunny]

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/america-opens-new-front-in-the-war-against-cancer-1673977.html

America opens new front in the war against cancer


Saturday, 25 April 2009


America is on the verge of committing unprecedented public funds in a new war aimed at eradicating cancer.
President Barack Obama has pledged to find a cure for the disease, funded with billions of dollars from the economic stimulus package, echoing the former president Richard Nixon's "war on cancer", announced in 1971 in the wake of the moon landings. At the same time, the British charity Cancer Research UK is rolling out 20 centres of excellence around the country in a £1.5bn, five-year programme aimed at tackling hard-to-treat cancers with the lowest survival rates.

Harpal Kumar, its chief executive, said: "Cancer research is at the dawn of a golden era. Survival rates have improved for almost all of the common cancers. But there are still major challenges. We need an arsenal of weapons to target individual cancers, and this is becoming a reality." The economic stimulus package announced by Mr Obama includes a huge $10bn infusion over two years for the National Institute of Health, of which $1.26bn is expected to go for cancer research, an increase in federal funding of a third.

[Forkboy]

1. Big K&R on this one.

:thumbsup:

[polichick]

2. I hope they use some of that money for alternative/holistic healing methods...

The cancer industry (mammograms/surgery/chemicals) is big business in this country ~ people go overseas for more natural treatments, such as diet, etc.

Also a "war on" cancer is absurd, since what we should be looking for is "healing."

[tabatha]

3. and prevention.

[polichick]

4. Definitely! The article does mention that, and I know Obama is big on it.

[ContinentalOp]

6. I sure hope they don't.

I hope the money goes to find treatments that actually work.

[polichick]

7. That silly attitude is what keeps the money flowing...

Actually, other countries are having great results from diet-based treatments ~ but in the U.S. that research is squashed because nobody makes money from the treatments. The cancer industry (mammograms, surgery and chemicals) is BIG BUSINESS here ~ which is the reason "a cure" conveniently alludes the researchers who are invested in it.

Even American doctors who aren't part of the big money-grab are beginning to write about alternatives. Google "plant-based diet, cancer" and you can read all day ~ and that's just one alternative treatment.

[patrice]

5. Prevention please! Including alternatives and complementary treatments. nt