What's next in the war on cancer? U will participate in Biden 'moonshot'

In many ways, medicine is slowly winning the war against cancer.

It remains a lethal disease — an estimated 1.7 million new cases and 600,000 deaths are expected in the U.S. this year, according to the American Cancer Society. But death rates from lung, breast, colon and stomach cancer have all steadily declined since the mid-1990s.

"There are a lot of people alive today that, if their cancer was diagnosed 30 years ago, they would not have survived," said Dr. Edward Greeno, executive medical director for University of Minnesota Cancer Care.

Now Minnesota leaders will gather in Minneapolis on June 29 as part of a national "moonshot" forum organized by Vice President Joe Biden to discuss barriers to further progress.

Registration is required to attend the event at the U's McNamara Alumni Center, but the public is invited to follow along on Twitter with the tag #MNMoonshot. Similar regional events are taking place nationwide as part of Biden's call to double the rate of progress toward a cure.

"There's so much power in having a number of people talking and thinking about this together," said Greeno, who will be a host and moderator at the local event.

One topic will be broadening recruitment for research, Greeno said — not just of cancer patients to try new medications or treatments, but of healthy population groups to determine who is most likely to develop cancer over time.

The U is working to expand access to experimental drugs and treatments by making them available in community clinics so that geography isn't a barrier to research participation. But gaining more public trust is critical as well, Greeno said.

"Some are very enthusiastic of being in research; they view it as a way to get the best possible care," Greeno said. "Others want to participate for more philanthropic reasons; they want to help science move forward. But there are a lot of people who have a negative view of the scientific establishment."

Immunotherapies and drugs tailored to patients' genetics are showing promise, but the high cost to make them is a looming problem.

"Certainly new cancer therapies are incredibly expensive, even while they're often very effective," Greeno said. "That's an important thing for us to address because we don't have an infinite amount of money to spend on these things."

jeremy.olson@startribune.com

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