Message from AACR

Launched in 2011 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the landmark National Cancer Act of 1971, which galvanized national efforts to conquer cancer, the AACR Cancer Progress Report series celebrates its 15th year in 2025. This milestone is a testament to the extraordinary progress against cancer that has been catalyzed by decades of transformative medical research and technological innovation. Discoveries across basic, translational, clinical, and population sciences are driving breakthroughs in cancer medicine, leading to a steady decline in overall US cancer death rate and allowing more people to live longer, fuller lives after a cancer diagnosis. Improvements in cancer prevention and early detection have averted an estimated 4.75 million deaths from five major cancer types over the past 45 years, underscoring the pivotal role of public health measures alongside medical innovation. As of January 1, 2025, the number of cancer survivors in the United States reached 18.6 million, a significant increase from the 12 million survivors reported in our inaugural report, and this number is projected to surpass 22 million by 2035.

Among the most critical drivers of the progress against cancer are precision medicine and cancer immunotherapy, which are revolutionizing how cancer is diagnosed and treated. When the first report was published in 2011, there were no cellular immunotherapies, and only one immune checkpoint inhibitor had been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). As of June 30, 2025, nine adoptive cell therapies have been approved, including the most recent groundbreaking T-cell receptor T-cell therapy for synovial sarcoma, and 15 immune checkpoint inhibitors are available for treating more than 20 cancer types.

Innovations in molecularly targeted therapeutics continue to fuel precision medicine, such as the approval of the first menin inhibitor for acute myeloid leukemia; promising advances for patients with rare cancers, including the first IDH1/2 inhibitor for low-grade glioma; and the first-ever HER3-targeted therapy for NRG1 fusion–positive lung and pancreatic tumors. This year we also report FDA approvals of two new antibody–drug conjugates, a rapidly growing class of therapeutics, for the treatment of breast and lung cancers.

These remarkable advances are a direct result of sustained federal investments in medical research and regulatory science, particularly through National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and FDA. However, this progress is now at risk. In fiscal year (FY) 2024, Congress reduced NIH funding for the first time in nearly a decade, and in 2025—a year marked by grant delays, canceled clinical trials, mass layoffs in the research workforce, and political interference—the cancer research and care community is facing its most serious funding crisis in a generation. Past funding reductions, such as those caused by the 2013 sequestration process, forced laboratories to shutter, some of which never resumed work, and delayed the development of high-potential therapies among other setbacks. Without robust, sustained, and predictable annual increases in funding, we risk reversing hard-won progress against cancer. In this regard, it is encouraging to see a bipartisan Senate effort not only to maintain current funding levels, but also to increase support for medical research, reaffirming the federal commitment to saving lives.

The need for robust support is underscored by the fact that cancer still exacts a heavy human and economic toll across the nation and around the world. More than two million people in the United States are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in 2025, and over 600,000 will die from the disease. Around the globe, the incidence of certain cancers—including colorectal, breast, gastric, and others—is rising among adults under 50. Stark disparities remain, with medically underserved communities bearing a disproportionate cancer burden. At the same time, the future of the scientific workforce is at risk. The declining NIH payline leaves many early-career and early-stage investigators unable to launch independent research careers, particularly in underfunded areas such as pediatric and rare cancers. Young investigators are the backbone of future scientific innovation, driving fresh ideas and bold discoveries, and the nation must do more to support them. To help address the current medical research funding crisis, AACR has launched its largest-ever grant program to provide $15 million in support of early-stage and mid-career cancer researchers, ensuring that talented scientists at critical points in their careers can continue advancing lifesaving discoveries.

Despite serious challenges, the resilience of cancer researchers and the momentum of scientific discovery have never been stronger. Emerging technologies are opening new frontiers in how we understand, detect, and treat cancer. Artificial intelligence is poised to transform every aspect of cancer research and patient care, from drug discovery and diagnostics to clinical decision-making and survivorship care. Innovative tools such as liquid biopsies and multi-cancer early detection tests promise to identify cancer at earlier, more treatable stages. Exciting advances in cancer vaccines, including those leveraging mRNA platforms, hold the potential to both prevent and treat intractable diseases, such as pancreatic cancer and kidney cancer. Meanwhile, next-generation molecularly targeted therapies, such as protein degraders, molecular glues and mutant-specific inhibitors, are expanding our ability to tackle some of the most elusive cancer targets. These and other breakthroughs on the horizon reaffirm that with sustained investment and scientific ingenuity, we can dramatically accelerate the pace of progress for the benefit of cancer patients.

Realizing this promise will depend on scientific innovation and on our ability to foster collaborations across disciplines, sectors, and borders. Initiatives such as AACR Project GENIE® and other pioneering efforts led by AACR and other organizations exemplify the power of global cooperation to drive scientific breakthroughs and ensure that patients around the world benefit from the latest advances.

The AACR Cancer Progress Report 2025 is both a celebration of what cancer science and medicine have delivered and a Call to Action to safeguard its future. The evidence is clear: federal investments in cancer research yield extraordinary returns in lives saved, suffering reduced, and hope restored. To continue advancing toward a future where cancer is preventable, treatable, and curable for all, Congress must act to ensure robust, sustained, and predictable funding increases for the NIH, NCI, FDA, and CDC, and invest in the next generation of cancer researchers and physician-scientists.

Together, with bold vision, bipartisan leadership, and unwavering commitment, we can build on 15 years of progress against cancer and continue transforming cancer care for our patients everywhere.

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