President Obama Vows To “Conquer Cancer In Our Time”

In his very first speech to Congress, President Obama told his peers that he would dedicate his presidency to finding a “cure” for cancer.

Cancer experts, however, caution the use of the word “cure.”

“The idea of calling for a cure does scare me a little bit because, I don’t think that’s realistic in some cancers,” stated Dr. Otis Brawley, a Chief Medical Officer for the American Cancer Society.

Despite concerns over President Obama’s statements, Dr. Brawley is “thrilled” that our new leader is focusing on reforming health care and providing additional funding for cancer research.

In a letter published in the Washington Post on February 8th, actor Patrick Swayze asked Congress to approve two bills: one that would set aside $3.5 billion dollars for the National Institute of Health, and a second Senate bill that would provide $10 billion for cancer treatment research.

President Obama’s plan promises $6 billion dollars to be put towards cancer-specific research in addition to the $10 billion dollars set forth by the stimulus package for 2009 and 2010.

For cancer experts and oncologists, finding a cure for certain types of cancer is still far off. Instead, they say, the focus should be on improving treatment methods for those suffering from cancer, so that those suffering from always-fatal forms of cancer will potentially live longer and experience better quality of life.

Dr. Brawley believes that one day, certain forms of cancer may be treated like chronic illnesses, and that patients will be able to live in “peaceful coexistence with cancer.”

Oncologists at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California San Diego, including Dr. Tony Reid, who directs the center’s clinical trials, believes that “the long-term management” of certain types of cancer is a step in the right direction towards finding a cure.

Dr. Andreas Ullrich, a Cancer Control Specialist at the World Health Organization headquarters in Switzerland, calls President Obama’s statement “encouraging.”

“We need this hope. We need to invest our efforts in research,” Ullrich stated. He also believes that focusing on “how to prevent people from exposing themselves to cancer risk,” such as cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption, is imperative.

For those suffering from malignant mesothelioma cancer, for example, President Obama’s dedication to finding a cure for cancer is of great importance. Mesothelioma does not currently have a cure, and mesothelioma treatment methods, such as chemo and radiation, are simply pallative measures. Ninety-nine percent of mesothelioma sufferers will lose their battle with the disease in less than two years following their diagnosis.

Cancer specialists – as well as those who have been touched in some way by cancer – call the President’s latest initiative a “tremendous asset” to the field of cancer study.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009 at 12:09 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.