In war on cancer, new drugs and therapies suggest we are on our way to finding cures
- More than 50 years after war was declared on cancer, real progress is starting to be made against the disease thanks to new therapies, drugs and vaccines
When it comes to treating cancer, the arc of progress has been long, slow and incremental. There have been plenty of breakthroughs along the way, but few have significantly shifted the dial.
Speak to most oncologists, who deal in dollops of realism, not hyperbole, and they will always seek to temper expectations. There is no silver bullet – and nor will there ever be, they say.
Survival rates for the likes of breast, prostate and skin cancer are the highest they have ever been. Those with incurable forms of the disease are living longer. And with each paper that is published, scientists better understand which hurdles need to be overcome to properly conquer cancer.
Of course, as the experts will hasten to add, there is a long way to go. But thanks to the ever-advancing progress of modern science, which is helping us fight cancer one step at a time, a clear path forward against the vastly complex disease is beginning to take shape.
