White House announces $240 million investment to advance Cancer Moonshot

The White House announced a $240 million investment to advance the Cancer Moonshot initiative. 

In a news release, the White House said that the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health will award $240 million to researchers and innovators working on cancer-related projects.

The latest investment includes projects to develop new tools to detect cancers early and produce innovative approaches to visualizing cancer cells during surgery to improve patient outcomes through the Precision Surgical Interventions program. 

The administration also plans to invest in projects that design devices that could deliver treatments directly to cancer cells to treat tumors more effectively. 

“Accelerating the fight against cancer is a core component of the President’s Unity Agenda, a set of priorities that Americans from every walk of life can support,” the White House said in its release. 

The administration noted President Biden’s other plans to advance his Cancer Moonshot initiative, including providing support for family members of those with cancer, and smoking prevention in the U.S., which the administration noted is the single largest driver of cancer deaths in the country.

“Today’s actions build on the progress the Cancer Moonshot has delivered since then, and at today’s Cancer Cabinet meeting, the President and First Lady will hear from Cabinet leaders on the progress made and the important work ahead.” 

Biden and first lady Jill Biden reignited the Cancer Moonshot initiative in 2022, reaffirming their goals to reduce the cancer death rate in the country and improve the quality of life for people with the disease and their loved ones.

The White House has also announced roughly 50 new programs, policies, and resources and secured more than 100 commitments from private companies, nonprofit organizations, patient groups to move forward with the initiative’s goals.