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Simply put, we have not adequately channeled our scientific know-how, funding, and energy into a full exploration of the one path certain to save lives: prevention. That it should become the ultimate goal of cancer research has been recognized since the war on cancer began. When I look at NCI’s budget request for fiscal year 2012, I’m deeply disappointed, though past experience tells me I shouldn’t be surprised. It is business as usual at the nation’s foremost cancer research establishment. More than $2 billion is requested for basic research into the mechanism and causes of cancer. Another $1.3 billion is requested for treatment. And cancer prevention and control? It gets $232 million altogether. (Remarkably, in the very same budget report, the NCI states, “Much of the progress against cancer in recent decades has stemmed from successes in the areas of prevention and control.”)
With the “war on cancer,” we may have created a framework that allows us to declare a stalemate, with no expectation of ultimate victory. We may have put generals in charge who think we should start talking about living with cancer as the “new normal.” At least that is what the director of the National Cancer Institute seems to be suggesting when he talks about “making cancer a disease you can live with and go to work with.” Harold Varmus, MD, who has also served as president of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer
Center in New York City, one of the world’s great cancer hospitals, goes on to say, “We have many, many patients with lethal cancers who are actually feeling pretty good and are working full time and enjoying their families. As long as their symptoms can be kept under control by radiotherapy and drugs that control symptoms and other modalities, we’re doing right by our patients.”
Simply put, we have not adequately channeled our scientific know-how, funding, and energy into a full exploration of the one path certain to save lives: prevention. That it should become the ultimate goal of cancer research has been recognized since the war on cancer began.
It is difficult to disagree with the Dr. and author of the book. Prevention is being ignored by the mainstream medical and research sector and Cancer appears to be a major cash cow for the Pharmaceutical companies business as usual.
Last edited by sickofnyc; 01-17-2013 at 11:09 AM..
Excuse me if I seem confused but according your quote.
"More than $2 billion is requested for basic research into the mechanism and causes of cancer."
Now this may seem incredibly stupid on my part but how do you prevent something if you don't know what caused it?
But if I'm not stupid then it would appear, according to your article, that the vast majority of money is being spend on on prevention rather than treatment.
With the money pharmaceuticals are making off of Cancer patients and other terminal diseases, I do not believe we will ever see a cure. Funding isn't an issue. Biotech's continue to scoop up scientists who get close to curing something offering to fund their research in exchange for the rights to that research and it's results. Then turn around to sell it to pharamceuticals. They're making money hand over fists. There is no money in curing anything. But there is billions in simply prolonging a life or delaying that death. My father's cancer medication, not the dozen other medications, but the main cancer fighting med (can't remember the name at the moment) was 10K-13K a month. That's friggin insane. Multiply that by hundreds of thousands of patients and you get stupid money. It's a grim cynical viewpoint, but I believe it's true.
Excuse me if I seem confused but according your quote.
"More than $2 billion is requested for basic research into the mechanism and causes of cancer."
Now this may seem incredibly stupid on my part but how do you prevent something if you don't know what caused it?
But if I'm not stupid then it would appear, according to your article, that the vast majority of money is being spend on on prevention rather than treatment.
We already know that there are environmental factors as well as food and drug additives that contribute/cause the disease. Prevention would mean addressing those issues and educating the populace.
The article clearly states that "prevention" is allotted a meager amount as compared to research.
Quote:
More than $2 billion is requested for basic research into the mechanism and causes of cancer. Another $1.3 billion is requested for treatment. And cancer prevention and control? It gets $232 million altogether. (Remarkably, in the very same budget report, the NCI states, “Much of the progress against cancer in recent decades has stemmed from successes in the areas of prevention and control.â€
With the money pharmaceuticals are making off of Cancer patients and other terminal diseases, I do not believe we will ever see a cure. Funding isn't an issue. Biotech's continue to scoop up scientists who get close to curing something offering to fund their research in exchange for the rights to that research and it's results. Then turn around to sell it to pharamceuticals. They're making money hand over fists. There is no money in curing anything. But there is billions in simply prolonging a life or delaying that death. My father's cancer medication, not the dozen other medications, but the main cancer fighting med (can't remember the name at the moment) was 10K-13K a month. That's friggin insane. Multiply that by hundreds of thousands of patients and you get stupid money. It's a grim cynical viewpoint, but I believe it's true.
I agree. I also believe that we will never see a cure for any ailment, only new treatments that can bring in big money.
This is of course only my opinion, but it is based upon observation that no big medical discoveries (cures) have come during my lifetime, only treatments for symptoms.
This is why I believe big Pharma, big Research and big Medicine should all be folded into a Universal Health Care system. By eliminating these money pits the same or better and more effective research will still be done but the greedy owners and rapacious executives would have to find something else to rip off.
During the past 60 years, the average number of women who survived for 10 years after being diagnosed with breast cancer and treated at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center tripled.
This is why I believe big Pharma, big Research and big Medicine should all be folded into a Universal Health Care system. By eliminating these money pits the same or better and more effective research will still be done but the greedy owners and rapacious executives would have to find something else to rip off.
By that logic, a company like Space X is an impossibility.
I'll gladly pay a 10% profit margin to a company that is twice as efficient.
Basically, your premise is that a public monopoly will better server the consumer. Wierd but monopolies have long been held to do quite the opposite.
Privately held monopolies have always done a poor job for their customers but have served their owners quite well. Publically owned does not necessarily mean monopoly. Cancer research could very easily be set up as two or more competing government agencies with the most successful getting the most money. That would still, as everybody was paid on the government pay scales instead of managerial millions, cost the society far less than the current oligopoly situation with the shamefully overpaid management.
How much do we need to spend on preventing the known causes? Smoking baaaad, yeah, we know that. Drinking tri-chlor ethane isn't such a great idea either. Being a full time beach bunnie probably isn't a good idea. But beyond that...do we know what we would focus "prevention" efforts on? We don't even know the causes, let alone how to prevent them from causing cancer. Or is it just another bottomless hole to pour money into?
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