See how modern cancer drugs work in our interactive graphicNearly four decades after President Nixon declared a "war on cancer", the toll has scarcely abated. Is it time for a new strategy?
As genomics gets into its stride, biologists are starting to learn why cancer is such a wily foe. The sheer diversity of mutations that can turn cells cancerous and drive a tumour's growth gives them endless opportunities to outwit our defences.
With this insight has come the realisation that, by tracking these mutations and targeting each of them with suitable drugs, we may be able to bring cancer under control. The human immune system, which can mount its own exquisitely-targeted responses, might also be harnessed to keep tumours in check.
These advances are unlikely to deliver the simple cures we once envisaged, but they could transform many kinds of cancer from killers into manageable conditions. Cancer will become something to live with, just as people now live with diabetes, or even with HIV.
In this special issue, we explore how our approach to cancer is changing, and what it could mean for patients over the coming decades.
Living with the enemy
Hit enough of the mutated pathways that make cells turn bad with targeted drugs, and notorious killers might be tamed, says Linda Geddes
See how modern cancer drugs work in our interactive graphic
Patients doing it for themselves
Doctors and scientists are no longer the only ones steering cancer research, says Jim Giles
Tumours under lock and key
Can the immune system be harnessed to control cancer? Maybe so, if we can mimic natural cases of dormancy Avoiding cancer: Top tips from the experts
World class advice on how to sidestep cancer
Editorial: How will we afford future cancer drugs?
The rewards of genomics are starting to emerge in cancer treatment, in the shape of new drugs. The only problem is how we are going to afford them. link....
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