Private development companies: Transforming academic research into new treatment options for cancer

摘要

In 1971, President Nixon signed the National Cancer Act into law. Intended to eradicate cancer as a major cause of death, the Act functioned, in part, to make funds available for the identification of new molecular targets. Nearly forty years later, with expenditures of over dollar200 billion, the age-adjusted death rate for cancer in the US remains unchanged (1, 2). In contrast, over this same period of time, with expenditures approaching only half of those invested in cancer research, deaths from coronary disease declined from over 375 to under 150 per 100,00 individuals (3, 4).