$1 billion planned for cancer 'moonshot'

The Obama administration announced on Monday that it hopes to spend $1 billion to fund a cancer “moonshot” in search of a cure. The stated goal of the initiative is to spur a decade’s worth of advances in cancer research in 5 years. The administration will ask for $755 million for cancer-related research in its budget for the 2017 fiscal year. However, the administration’s $1 billion commitment is not enough to fund even one-half of the cost of a new cancer medicine, according to a widely cited estimate of drug development costs.