ASCO Applauds Bold Recommendations From Cancer Moonshot Blue Ribbon Panel
ASCO commended the Cancer Moonshot Initiative Blue Ribbon Panel for its ambitious recommendations to accelerate progress against cancer.
“We applaud the Blue Ribbon Panel for its work and the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) National Cancer Advisory Board for convening the panel,” said ASCO President Daniel F. Hayes, MD, FASCO. “In addition, we are most grateful to President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for conceptualizing and launching the Cancer Moonshot Initiative. ASCO stands ready to help implement this report's findings, along with the other efforts of the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, when they are announced in October.”
Feedback From ASCO
ASCO submitted key recommendations to the panel for the implementation of the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, focused on harnessing cutting-edge information technology and other innovations to hasten the trajectory of progress in cancer research. ASCO's recommendations included enhanced access to clinical outcomes databases (like the Society's CancerLinQ™) to help learn from all cancer patients; a sustained, well-funded national cancer research system; and clinical cancer research infrastructure. ASCO is pleased that these recommendations were incorporated into the final report.
“The panel's thoughtful work makes an important contribution to the Cancer Moonshot Initiative,” said Dr. Hayes. “The recommendations could significantly expedite our nation's progress against cancer if implemented. For this to happen, it is crucial that Congress provide the necessary funding to support the priority projects identified by the Blue Ribbon Panel and those we will hear about from the Task Force and Vice President's Executive Reports later this year.”
The panel, which includes experts from all facets of cancer care, has been deliberate and open in seeking feedback from the cancer community on how best to implement the Cancer Moonshot Initiative. ASCO hosted a “listening session” for the NCI at its 2016 Annual Meeting where the panel received feedback and ideas directly from ASCO meeting attendees. Vice President Biden also addressed ASCO's Annual Meeting attendees in person. To view Vice President Biden's address to the clinical oncology community, go to www.asco.org/moonshot.
On September 6, 2016, ASCO also sent a letter to Vice President Biden recommending several immediate and practical actions that he could take during the remainder of his term in the White House—steps that could make a lasting impact in the effort to discover new cancer treatments. Read the full letter to Vice President Biden.
Panel Recommendations
The Panel broke its recommendations into 10 main subjects:
- Network for Direct Patient Engagement
- Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Trials Network
- Therapeutic Target Identification to Overcome Drug Resistance
- A National Cancer Data Ecosystem for Sharing and Analysis
- Fusion Oncoproteins in Childhood Cancers
- Symptom Management Research
- Prevention and Early Detection: Implementation of Evidence-Based Approaches
- Retrospective Analysis of Biospecimens from Patients Treated With Standard of Care
- Generation of Human Tumor Atlases
- Development of New Enabling Cancer Technologies
To read the Panel’s full recommendation report, click here.
The content in this post has not been reviewed by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) and does not necessarily reflect the ideas and opinions of ASCO®.
