Everyone Has a Role in NCI’s National Cancer Plan
Recharting the trajectory of cancer in the United States requires involvement from everyone—government and private investors, researchers, clinicians, and people with cancer, their caregivers, and advocates, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) said in April 2023 as it launched the National Cancer Plan (https://nationalcancerplan.cancer.gov/). The plan supports the Cancer Moonshot initiative (https://voice.ons.org/advocacy/biden-cancer-moonshot-relaunch-will-end-cancer-as-we-know-it) and “aligns broad societal engagement and focuses on critical needs to end cancer as we know it.”
Bringing together critical stakeholders, NCI collaborated with the National Institutes of Health, Cancer Moonshot, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and cancer community representatives to build the plan, which will (https://nationalcancerplan.cancer.gov/about) “evolve over time as research continues, advancements are made, and lessons are learned across the cancer care community.”
The plan contains three key elements (https://nationalcancerplan.cancer.gov/about):
- Goals to prevent cancer, reduce deaths, and ensure the best quality of life for people with cancer
- A set of strategies for each goal, detailing research and other activities needed to maximize benefits
- A call to action for every organization and individual to do their part to help the mission succeed
Under the first two elements, the plan has eight goals (https://nationalcancerplan.cancer.gov/about):
- Prevent cancer.
- Detect cancers early.
- Develop effective treatments.
- Eliminate inequities.
- Deliver optimal care.
- Engage every person.
- Maximize data utility.
- Optimize the workforce.
“The President’s Cancer Moonshot has galvanized the goal of advancing the fight against cancer,” Monica M. Bertagnolli, MD, NCI director, said (https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2023/04/03/hhs-releases-national-cancer-plan.html). “The National Cancer Plan is a vision and a roadmap for how we can make faster progress against this all-too-common disease. By working together, we can achieve the Cancer Moonshot goal of reducing the cancer death rate by 50% within 25 years.”