of their work, as well as that of FDA and CDC, is supported by funds from the federal government. Public sector funding from NIH and NCI contributes significantly to the development of novel anticancer drugs including molecularly targeted therapeutics and immunotherapeutics (see Advances in Treatment with Molecularly Targeted Therapy, p. 83 and Immunotherapy: Pushing the Frontier of Cancer Medicine, p. 99) (56,57). The rapid pace of approval of these cutting-edge treatments, many of which were evaluated in NCI-funded clinical trials, has transformed the treatment landscape and dramatically improved patient outcomes. A recent study that evaluated the population-level impact of NCI-funded clinical research concluded that over the past 40 years, patients with cancer in the United States gained 14 million years of additional life because of these trials (58). Collectively, these findings highlight the importance of federal investments in medical research in saving and extending lives and driving progress against cancer. The consecutive increases for the NIH budget in the last seven fiscal years have helped maintain the momentum of progress against cancer and other diseases (see Investments in Research Fuel a Healthier Future, p. 153). Additionally, NIH research grants help sustain the U.S. economy. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, the $36.68 billion awarded to researchers in the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia supported more than 568,000 jobs and nearly $97 billion in economic activity (59). NCI’s current success rate of 14.1 percent in FY 2021 has created a grant funding crisis and has left potentially lifesaving cancer science and medicine unfunded. There are also serious concerns that early-stage scientists and those from underrepresented racial or ethnic backgrounds might choose other career paths instead of academic research, which will impede progress against cancer. If Congress lowers the NCI budget, it will force the Institute to reduce pay lines to even lower levels. Such actions will result in highly meritorious grants being unfunded and make it harder for the next generation of scientists to build promising careers in cancer research. Therefore, it is imperative that in the years ahead, Congress continues to provide sustained, robust, and predictable increases in investments in the federal agencies that are vital for fueling progress against cancer, in particular, NIH, NCI, FDA, and CDC (see AACR Call to Action, p. 167). Such investments will help the medical research community sustain the momentum of scientific and technological innovation and accelerate the pace of progress against cancer to achieve the President’s Cancer Moonshot goal of reducing U.S. cancer death rate by 50 percent by the year 2047. TO ACHIEVE THE CANCER MOONSHOT GOAL OF REDUCING OVERALL U.S. CANCER DEATH RATES BY 50% BY 2047 Cancer death rates must decline faster 2.3% per year CURRENT RATE 2.7% per year NEEDED RATE Cancer in 2023 AACR Cancer Progress Report 2023 23
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