CDC Awards $215 Million to Advance President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot

September 07, 2022 by Alec Stone MA, MPA, Former ONS Director of Government Affairs and Advocacy

To support the objectives of President Joe Biden’s relaunched Cancer Moonshot (https://voice.ons.org/advocacy/biden-cancer-moonshot-relaunch-will-end-cancer-as-we-know-it) initiative, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html) $215 million to three national cancer programs in June 2022. The funds are part of a $1.1 billion investment in cancer prevention and control (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html).

The award went (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html) to the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program, and the National Program of Cancer Registries. The programs distribute funding to state, local, tribal, territorial public health organizations, and academic institutions to improve cancer surveillance, provide clinical preventive services, and promote evidence-based strategies in communities.

“Today we know cancer as a disease that we often diagnose too late, but thankfully we have a few ways to prevent it and tackle stark inequities across races, regions, and resources,” Xavier Becerra, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services secretary, said (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html). “This funding is a critical investment in support of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot initiative and our efforts to help ensure that everyone in the United States equitably benefits from the tools we have to detect and diagnose cancer.”

“Our mission is for all people to be free of cancer, and to do that we must support coordinated, comprehensive cancer control efforts,” Lisa C. Richardson, MD, MPH, director of CDC’s Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, said (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html). “This funding helps organizations work together to take action, address preventable health disparities, and close gaps in cancer care access, quality, and outcomes.”

Award recipients are using the funds  to achieve CDC’s goals (https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0608-cancer-award.html) of reducing preventable cancers (https://voice.ons.org/news-and-views/all-patients-regardless-of-insurance-must-have-access-to-cancer-screening), ensuring the right screening (https://voice.ons.org/news-and-views/develop-your-individual-cancer-screening-plan) at the right time, and improving health and wellness for cancer survivors.


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