Taiwan included in U.S. cancer prevention project
Washington, Sept. 20 (CNA) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has announced that the United States will work with institutions in Taiwan and eight other countries in an effort to promote cancer prevention and control.
Biden made the anno
uncement in a speech at the 2016 Social Good Summit in New York Monday, in which he expressed hope that by 2030, cancer will have disappeared from the world.
"We have an obligation to help, not later, not tomorrow -- now," Biden said.
"What I'd like to talk to you about is my hope that by the year 2030, we'll live in a world where cancer is ended as we know it," he later added.
To achieve the goal, Biden announced three steps through the National Cancer Moonshot initiative, which President Barack Obama announced in January and had Biden lead the effort, with the aim of accelerating the progress toward prevention, treatment and a cure for cancer.
The first step is the announcement of 10 new commitments with nine nations to support better international cancer research and care.
The U.S. will work with institutions in Canada, China, Germany, Switzerland, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea in the field of proteogenomics, and with Serbia, Sweden and Japan to open a discussion about better prevention, screening, treatment and research collaboration, Biden said.
Also, he went on, the U.S. Department of Energy will work with Norway to share 1.7 million cervical screening results over the course of 25 years, to seek out patterns in diagnosis and treatment.
Biden also announced the creation of regional hubs -- collaborative centers that can help decrease disparities in cancer research around the world. These hubs will be funded by the National Cancer Institute, working with Australia, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. This initiative will focus on areas of the world where specific types of cancers are leading killers.
The last step was that Secretary of State John Kerry will strengthen U.S. bilateral science and technology engagements to support Cancer Moonshot.
Biden expressed hope that this will inspire better mobile diagnostics and screening, as well as wearable tech, so that people can track their health more efficiently.
The vice president's son, Beau Biden, died of brain cancer in May 2015 at the age of 46.
"There's nothing more helpless as a parent than looking at your child, no matter what their age, knowing there's not much you can do to help," Biden said at the Social Good Summit.
(By Tony Liao and Elizabeth Hsu)
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