The enduring national commitment to ending cancer as we know it

“ And what I want to talk with them about today is how we go about taking advantage of the work they’ve done to get us where we are today, because I think we’re on the cusp of some real breakthroughs across the board on cancer. And that’s what we’re going to talk about.
And probably to all of you, like all of us, cancer is personal for almost everybody. It’s probably the one word that is the most frightening word in the English language to people. When they hear that “C word,” cancer, it is — it is just devastating. ”

“ And I always ask at — when I talk about cancer, I ask the audience if they — to raise their hand, if any of them were suffering from cancer as I spoke, and/or they lost someone, and virtually 70 percent of every audience — whether or not it’s 4,000 people or 400 people. And a lot of folks in this room have, like many of you maybe have been victims of cancer and overcome it. ”

“ For my family, for the Vice President’s family, and for millions of families across our Nation, the fight against cancer is personal. Too many of us know the sinking feeling of shock and devastation when a loved one receives a diagnosis of cancer—too many of us know the unspeakable pain when the fight cannot be won. Each year, colorectal cancer claims more than 50,000 American lives, making it the second leading cause of cancer deaths in our Nation. ”

“ Despite the incredible advancements we have made in recent years, cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the United States. Behind this statistic are millions of Americans who know the distress of receiving a cancer diagnosis, and millions more who watch family members or friends courageously fight this disease and too often succumb to it. Cancer is brutal and cruel, and I intimately understand the incalculable human toll that this disease inflicts on patients and their loved ones—a toll that strikes communities of color at disproportionately high rates. ”

“ Our Nation has made extraordinary advances in the fight against cancer. Still, much work remains to be done. We owe it to every person who has lost their battle with this disease, every person living with this disease, and every person who may one day contract it, to continue working tirelessly to defeat it. During National Cancer Control Month, let us renew our efforts to save lives and spare suffering by accelerating our work to end cancer as we know it. ”

“ I encourage citizens, government agencies, private businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other interested groups to join in activities that will increase awareness of what Americans can do to prevent and control cancer. ”

“ Colorectal cancer can afflict anyone, but the risk is higher among some Americans than others. When we lost the trailblazing actor Chadwick Boseman to colon cancer last year after a heroic fight, it served as a reminder that this disease disproportionately impacts communities of color—and is particularly fatal among Black Americans. ”

“ We will need health care providers, businesses, civic, religious and civil rights organizations, and unions all rallying together in common purpose and with urgency, purpose, and resolve. We will need to reassert America’s leadership in the world in the fight against this and future public health threats. ”

“ I will also ask for an appropriation of an extra $100 million to launch an intensive campaign to find a cure for cancer, and I will ask later for whatever additional funds can effectively be used. The time has come in America when the same kind of concentrated effort that split the atom and took man to the moon should be turned toward conquering this dread disease. Let us make a total national commitment to achieve this goal.
America has long been the wealthiest nation in the world. Now it is time we became the healthiest nation in the world. ”

“ A child born in 1998 may well live to see the 22nd century.
Tonight, as part of our gift to the millennium, I propose a 21st Century research fund for pathbreaking scientific inquiry, the largest funding increase in history for the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the National Cancer Institute. We have already discovered we have already discovered genes for breast cancer and diabetes. I ask you to support this initiative so ours will be the generation that finally wins the war against cancer and begins a revolution in our fight against all deadly diseases. ”

“ Investing in research and development help lead to lithium batteries, LED technology, the Internet itself. It helped lead to vaccine breakthroughs that are helping us beat COVID-19; to the Human Genome Project, which has led to breakthroughs in how we understand and fight cancer and other diseases. ”

“ Last year, Vice President Biden said that with a new moonshot, America can cure cancer. Last month, he worked with this Congress to give scientists at the National Institutes of Health the strongest resources they’ve had in over a decade. Tonight, I’m announcing a new national effort to get it done. And because he’s gone to the mat for all of us, on so many issues over the past forty years, I’m putting Joe in charge of Mission Control. ”

“ Investment in science and technology produced tremendous progress in health care during the last century. In this new century, we must reaffirm our dedication to the research, information sharing, and access to care that will help us ultimately win the fight against cancer. ”

“ With proton therapy, the dose stops right at the tumor so you’re not treating normal tissues. So it’s a major advancement in the treatment of cancers.
THE PRESIDENT: Treating normal tissue sometimes is a very bad thing. Just — it also — it can destroy a normal tissue. It can destroy the cancer — hit that — but it goes through the cancer and destroys whatever is beyond it. ”

“ America leads the world in medical research, and we are committed to continuing progress in research for prevention, better treatments, and a cure for ovarian cancer. This year, the National Institutes of Health will invest an estimated $106 million in ovarian cancer research, and the National Cancer Institute is sponsoring clinical trials to explore new ways to improve ovarian cancer treatment. ”

“ Whatever you think of the tax program, whatever you think of the spending cuts, consider the cost of not changing. Remember the numbers that you all know. If we just keep on doing what we're doing, by the end of the decade we'll have a $650-billion-a-year deficit. If we just keep on doing what we're doing, by the end of the decade 20 percent of our national income will go to health care every year, twice as much as any other country on the face of the globe. If we just keep on doing what we're doing, over 20 cents on the dollar will have to go to service the debt. ”

“ There will be no clearer test of the commitment of this Congress to the anti-inflation fight than the legislation that I will submit again this year to hold down inflation in hospital care.
Over the next 5 years, my proposals will save Americans a total of $60 billion, of which $25 billion will be savings to the American taxpayer in the Federal budget itself. The American people have waited long enough. ”

“ As everyone knows, our children are targets of a massive media campaign to hook them on cigarettes. Now, I ask this Congress to resist the tobacco lobby, to reaffirm the FDA's authority to protect our children from tobacco and to hold tobacco companies accountable, while protecting tobacco farmers.
Smoking has cost taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars under Medicare and other programs. You know, the states have been right about this. Taxpayers shouldn't pay for the cost of lung cancer, emphysema, and other smoking-related illnesses, the tobacco companies should. ”

“ Because the risk of death from colorectal cancer drops dramatically when the cancer is caught early, we can save lives by calling attention to risk factors and increasing routine screening. This month is our chance to improve public understanding of colorectal cancer risk, inform people about screening recommendations, and set our sights on broadening prevention strategies, improving treatments, and finding a cure. ”

“ A recent Government study estimated that if all 50-year-old adults were screened for colorectal cancer, we could prevent approximately 35,000 deaths. That is why it is so crucial, especially for Americans over 50 or otherwise at increased risk, to receive regular screenings. And although the disease is relatively rare in younger adults, the incidence of colorectal cancer has been rising among this group. No matter your age, every American should take possible colorectal cancer symptoms seriously and bring them to the attention of your health care provider. ”

“ Another powerful weapon in our crusade is information. Better understanding of risk factors can help people make smarter choices—like quitting smoking or undergoing needed cancer screening. The Cancer Information Service (CIS) , a free education service provided by the NCI, acts as the public's link to clear and understandable cancer information. I encourage Americans seeking information on the latest cancer research and treatments to call CIS at 1-800-4-CANCER or to access the NCI directly on the Internet at http://www.cancer.gov. ”

“ I urge Americans not to delay recommended screenings, doctor’s visits, and treatments. Because of the Affordable Care Act, most health insurance plans must cover a set of preventive services with no out-of-pocket costs, including many cancer screenings. ”

“ My Administration is proud to support efforts like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Comprehensive Cancer Control and the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Programs, which help Americans in communities throughout the country get recommended cancer screenings. ”

“ The United States will build public trust through an unprecedented vaccination public health campaign at the federal, State, Tribal, territorial, local and community level. The public education campaign will support vaccination programs, address vaccine hesitancy, help simplify the vaccination process for Americans, and educate the public on effective prevention measures. ”

“ Drive equity throughout the vaccination campaign and broader pandemic response. The federal government will drive equity in vaccinations by using demographic data to identify communities hit hardest by the virus and supporting them, ensuring no outof-pocket costs for vaccinations, and making sure vaccines reach those communities. Working with state, local, and community-based organizations and trusted health care providers, like community health centers, will be central to this effort. ”

“ Equity will also be central to our strategy so that the communities and people being disproportionately infected and killed by the pandemic receive the care they need and deserve.
Our national strategy will be driven by scientists and public health experts who will regularly speak directly to you, free from political interference as they make decisions strictly on science and public health alone. ”

“ Expand the clinical and public health workforce, including community-based workers. In order to assure equitable PPE distribution, testing, contact tracing, social support for quarantine and isolation and vaccination, there must be sufficient workforce to serve the communities in greatest need. ”