HHS Releases National Cancer Plan

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a National Cancer Plan, developed by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Cancer Institute (NCI). The plan provides a framework for everyone—across the federal government and all of society—to collaborate in ending cancer as we know it, and to realize the vision laid out by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden’s Cancer Moonshot.

“The President’s Cancer Moonshot has galvanized the goal of advancing the fight against cancer,” said Monica M. Bertagnolli, M.D., Director of the National Cancer Institute. “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.”

The National Cancer Plan was drafted by NCI and NIH, in collaboration with the Cancer Moonshot, HHS, and representatives from the cancer community. The plan includes eight essential goals and accompanying strategies that outline what must be accomplished to prevent more cancers, reduce deaths from the disease, and improve the lives of everyone after a diagnosis with cancer. These eight goals support the ambitious, achievable goals set by the reignited Cancer Moonshot to reduce the cancer death rate by at least half within 25 years and to improve the cancer patient and family experience.

The National Cancer Plan’s eight goals are:

• Prevent Cancer
• Detect Cancers Early
• Develop Effective Treatments
• Eliminate Inequities
• Deliver Optimal Care
• Engage Every Person
• Maximize Data Utility
• Optimize the Workforce

The plan calls for collaboration across all sectors of society, traditional and non-traditional, to work together to make faster progress against cancer.

NCI is the leader of the National Cancer Program and, thereby, takes the lead in galvanizing its federal partners and the private sector in making progress against cancer by working together. The National Cancer Program, a coordinated effort that involves governmental, private sector, academic, philanthropic, and patient advocacy partners, was created in 1971 by the National Cancer Act. This act established NCI as the leader of the National Cancer Program, as well as created the President’s Cancer Panel (PCP) to monitor the activities of the National Cancer Program and report to the President of the United States on barriers to progress in reducing the burden of cancer.