Joe Biden invokes JFK in 'cancer moonshot' initiative

US president touts ambitious plan to 'end cancer as we know it'

US President Joe Biden speaks on the cancer moonshot initiative at the John F Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston. AP

Marking the 60th anniversary of John F Kennedy's moonshot address, President Joe Biden said the US must use its resources to "end cancer as we know it".

Harking back to Kennedy's pitch to land a man on the Moon, Mr Biden promoted his administration's plan that "is bold, ambitious and, I might add, completely do-able".

The president, who lost his son Beau to cancer in 2015, presented a new government-backed study aimed at identifying blood tests for the detection of at least one form of cancer.

US Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy introduces US President Joe Biden at the JFK Library and Museum in Boston, Massachusetts. EPA

If successful, it would provide a less-invasive way of detecting cancer early, the White House said.

"The cancer moonshot is one of the reasons why I ran for president," Mr Biden said at the John F Kennedy Presidential Museum and Library in Boston, Massachusetts.

More than 1.9 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed in the US this year, the American Cancer Society forecasts. Breast cancer was expected to lead new diagnoses with more than 290,000 cases.

The American Cancer Society also projected 609,360 cancer-related deaths to occur in the US in 2022, or about 1,670 a day.

Mr Biden said in February that he hoped to cut cancer death rates in the US by 50 per cent within the next 25 years.

“Today, we have many of the building blocks needed to make significant progress combating cancer but we must come together to equitably deliver on this promise,” the White House said on Monday.

David Letterman waves as President Joe Biden passes on the receiving line following his address. AP

As part of his address, Mr Biden will also sign an executive order establishing an initiative to ensure innovative technology designed to eradicate cancer is manufactured in the US.

His 'cancer moonshot' drive was designed to invoke Kennedy's space programme, which received significant public backing.

But Mr Biden's cancer programme is more modest and relies on private investment.

"When president Kennedy committed to putting a man on the Moon and bringing him back, the President … had the building blocks to know what was possible,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

“Today, we have many of the building blocks needed to make significant progress preventing, detecting and treating cancer.

Joe Biden in 2011 with his son, US Army Capt Beau Biden, who died from a cancer-related illness. AFP

Efforts to reduce deaths are set to focus on lung cancer. Mostly attributable to smoking, it causes more cancer-related deaths in the US than any other, the American Cancer Society said.

More than 130,000 people this year are expected to die from the disease.

The American Cancer Society says lung screening has helped to drive down the cancer death rate by 32 per cent from its peak in 1991 to 2019, the most recent year for which numbers are available.

But only 5 per cent those eligible are being screened for lung cancer.

"We don't do enough to help patients and families navigate the cancer-care system," Mr Biden said.

"There's bewilderment, feeling of being on your own, frustration as hospital said doctors can't easily share your medical records."

He said that in detection, every minute counts.

Beau Biden and family — in pictures

President Joe Biden with his first wife Neilia Hunter Biden. Getty

The wedding announcement for Neilia Hunter and Joe Biden. Public Domain

Mr Biden with his first wife Neilia with sons Hunter and Beau. Neilia and 13-month-old daughter Naomi were killed in a car crash on December 18, 1972. Hunter and Beau sustained injuries, but survived the crash. Getty

Days before Mr Biden lost his wife, Neilia, and baby daughter, Naomi, in a car crash that left his sons badly injured. The News Journal-USA Today Network / Sipa USA

Joe Biden takes his oath of office from US Senate secretary Frank Valeo in son Beau's hospital room with his father-in-law, Robert Hunter, at his side. Bettmann / Getty Images

President Joe Biden arrives at St Joseph on the Brandywine Catholic Church in Wilmington. AP

US President Joe Biden with his sons Beau and Hunter and his wife Jill in an undated photo. AFP

The memorial of US President Joe Biden's late son, Beau Biden is pictured in the village of Sojevo, Kosovo. Reuters

Kosovo's ceremonial guard carry the presidential medal during a presidential medal ceremony for Beau Biden. AFP

Mr Biden and sons Hunter and Beau. Getty

US President Joe Biden, with his wife Jill Biden and members of his family as they salute the crowd on stage after delivering remarks in Wilmington, Delaware, on November 7, 2020. AFP

Mr Biden and first lady Jill Biden married in June 1977 and had one child together, daughter Ashley, as well as raising Hunter and Beau, Mr Biden's two sons with his first wife, Neilia. Getty

Beau Biden passed away in 2015 from brain cancer at the age of 46. AFP

Hunter Biden survived the car crash that occurred 50 years ago. Reuters

Ashley Biden is Mr Biden's daughter with second wife Jill. Getty

Naomi Biden is Mr Biden's oldest granddaughter. AP

Granddaughter Finnegan Biden regularly appeared on the campaign trail with her grandfather. AFP

Granddaughter Maisy Biden is close friends with former first daughter, Sasha Obama. AP

Granddaughter Natalie Biden is the daughter of the late Beau. Reuters

Grandson Robert Hunter Biden II was named after his uncle.

Mr Biden's sister Valerie Biden Owens, right, is highly active in her older brother's political campaigns. AFP

Mr Biden's brother Jim Biden was there for the first senate race in 1972 and the fatal crash. Getty

Daughter-in-law: Hallie Biden is the widow of the late Beau Biden, who she married in 2002. Reuters