According to the World Cancer Report 2020, cancer is the first or second leading cause of early deaths in over 134 of the 183 countries and yet our world has never thought of aggressively pursing a cancer vaccine. This trend must change urgently and starting from 2022 we must aim to eradicate cancer from the world.
The world urgently remains in need of cancer vaccines and the only difference from coronavirus is that cancer is not infectious, that does not mean it is not urgent. Cancer vaccines must protect the same very immune system that the disease tries to break and this vaccine is now urgently needed than ever before as industrialization, pollutants, chemicals added to food are all building up carcinogenic levels unknown to civilians. Low and middle-income countries will be hit the most with escalating costs around treatment, low key social protection and non-availability of scientific research that prevents illnesses.
Since the first vaccine developed 200 years ago, vaccines have demonstrated how they prevented disease and death. Today, our world is better off with technology, human resources, connectivity, and advancement in science.
Cancers must be approached on war footing like how COVID-19 was approached so that in the next 2 years the world sees vaccines for breast cancer, cervical cancer, lung cancer, bladder cancer, thyroid cancer, brain cancer, colorectal cancer, kidney cancer, liver cancer, myeloma, melanoma, leukemia, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, stomach cancer, oesophageal cancer. This will dramatically transform the way we approach healthcare. Preventive cancer vaccines, therapeutic cancer vaccines, personalized neoantigen vaccines all need to look at cancer from a uniform lens in preventing the disease rather than late treatment of the same.
It is also an appeal to all our ambitious space mission competitors like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezoz, Richard Branson to put money that can fast track our fight for cancer and eliminate this in 2 years and then begin the space mission after that!
Just imagine a world where we have vaccines for cancer and where no one will need to die because of the disease. Today we have artificial intelligence, we have data analytics, we have in some places the most advanced labs around the world, what stops us from a cancer vaccine is not the availability of resources, but the will to pursue this daring effort which has the potential to save a billion lives, simultaneously. World Health Organization must up the game to bring in and foster cancer cure as a central agenda across the world and must gather big businesses to focus on cancer cure where a common vaccine can be aimed at killing the cancer cells for all types of cancer. Yes, the pitch is for a common vaccine for all cancers and our time is now. Indulge.
Dr. Edmond Fernandes is the CEO, CHD Group, India Country Office & Honorary Director - Edward & Cynthia Institute of Public Health
