Joe Biden threatens cancer funding cuts if hospitals don't collaborate more

Biden made an impassioned plea for increased urgency in the fight against cancer.

'I believe we can do in the next five years what would normally take 10 years'

Thomson Reuters Posted: Jun 29, 2016 2:04 PM EDT | Last Updated: June 29, 2016

U.S. Vice President JosephBiden on Wednesday announced plans as part of theadministration's "Cancer Moonshot" initiative, aimed at speedingdevelopment of treatments by cutting bureaucracy and easingcollaboration between scientists, industry, patients andgovernment.

Speaking at a cancer summit at Howard University inWashington, Biden made an impassioned plea for increased urgencyin the fight against cancer. The event was part of a nationalday of action in the U.S. involving hundreds of researchers, patientadvocates and data experts.

Biden's son Beau died last year at age 46 from brain cancer,something Biden said helps inform his passion for the project."I believe we can do in the next five years what would normally take 10 years," he said. "Time matters, days matter,minutes matter."

Among proposals intended to bypass inefficiency at thefederal level, he announced the formation of an Oncology Centerof Excellence at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which willcoordinate and review all of FDA cancer treatments.

We are moving into a very complicated area in oncologywhere drugs and devices and biologics are going to be used incombination or sequentially.-Dr. RichardPazdur

Biden alsocalled out drug companiesfor unnecessary price increases and major research hospitals forinsufficient collaboration.

"It's not anybody's fault, but we've got to fix it," Biden said.

Cancer researchers and their institutions have pushed back onthose critiques, arguing they already share reams of data andpartner frequently with each other and the government. They've alsocited major hurdles imposed by federal agencies with intensebureaucratic requirements that make it near-impossible to developtreatments quickly and get them approved for patients a concernthat Biden acknowledged.

The oncology centre announcement comes as scientific advances in diagnostics allow forgreater tailoring of drugs to an individual's genetic profile.It is the first of four potential centres proposed under a billmoving through Congress.

Under the existing review system, companies submit productsto different divisions of the agency depending on whether it isa drug, device or biologic, a drug made from living cells. Atreatment that combines a drug and a diagnostic device could getreviewed on different timelines.

"We are moving into a very complicated area in oncologywhere drugs and devices and biologics are going to be used incombination or sequentially," Dr. Richard Pazdur, the FDA'scancer drug director, said in an interview.

Full speech text of Barack Obama's last state of the union address

Pazdur will oversee the establishment of the centre and actas its director for the next 120 days, with the potential forthe position to be renewed. He will report directly to FDACommissioner Robert Califf.

The " Cancer Moonshot" initiative was announced by U.S.PresidentBarack Obama at his State of the Union address in January.

Biden outlined a slew of other collaborations andinitiatives, including making it easier for patients to find andenter clinical trials through the creation of a cancer trialswebsite and making it easier for scientists to focus on researchand less on raising money.

"We have to change the culture that turns scientists intogrant writers," he said. "We have to reward teamwork."

With files from The Associated Press

CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News

Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|