New AACR report outlines future of cutting-edge cancer research

Today, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) released the 16th edition of its annual Cancer Progress Report. This comprehensive report provides current data on cancer incidence, mortality, and survivorship. It also outlines how basic, translational, and clinical cancer research and cancer-related population science-largely supported by federal investments in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-are improving health and saving lives.

The AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026 highlights the latest advances in understanding, preventing, detecting, and treating cancer as well as important information about supporting cancer patients and survivors. This year’s report also looks ahead to the future of cancer research, describing the promising impact of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and liquid biopsy along with cutting-edge therapeutics like cancer vaccines and RNA medicines. Several patients who have benefited from recent scientific breakthroughs generously shared their personal stories in the report, thereby illustrating the real-world impact of cancer research.

A cornerstone of AACR’s educational and advocacy work, the report closes with specific policy recommendations to achieve a healthier future for all Americans and a strong Call to Action that urges Congress and other policymakers to protect the investments in research and merit-based systems that make progress against cancer possible.

Over the course of my 25-year career as a physician-scientist, I have witnessed a remarkable transformation in our understanding of cancer and how we diagnose and treat patients. Advances in genomics, immunology, and artificial intelligence have given us more insight than ever before into the complexities of cancer. This knowledge is helping us to develop highly effective treatments-and entirely new therapeutic approaches-that more precisely match each patient’s disease. As this year’s report illustrates, progress against cancer is proceeding rapidly, with more breakthroughs on the horizon. We can’t stop here. Now is the time to invest in medical research, encourage collaboration across laboratories and disciplines, and support the next generation of cancer scientists. By doing so, we will accelerate discoveries and translate them into increasingly precise, biology-driven approaches that will transform the lives of patients with cancer.”

Keith Flaherty, MD, FAACR, AACR President, chair of the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026 Steering Committee

Research is driving progress against cancer

Years of coordinated efforts and multidisciplinary collaborations among stakeholders in the medical research community have led to remarkable progress against cancer. According to the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026:

• From July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, FDA approved 11 new anticancer therapeutics, including:

  • the first molecularly targeted therapy for a rare, aggressive brain tumor with a specific genetic alteration;
  • the first approval of a proteolysis-targeting chimera, a molecularly targeted therapeutic that harnesses the cell’s protein degradation machinery to kill cancer cells, for patients with breast cancer;
  • the first immune checkpoint inhibitor for ovarian cancer; and
  • the first chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for patients with marginal zone lymphoma.

• During this same time frame, FDA also approved:

  • new uses for five previously approved anticancer therapeutics;
  • a wearable, noninvasive device for treating pancreatic cancer;
  • an at-home human papillomavirus (HPV) self-collection kit; and
  • several AI-based tools to improve early detection and diagnosis of cancers.

• Reductions in smoking rates and advances in prevention, early detection, and treatment have contributed to the decline of the overall cancer death rate in the United States by 35% between 1991 and 2024-resulting in 4.8 million fewer cancer deaths.
• Increasingly, research progress is contributing to the survival of individuals with advanced and metastatic cancers. For all cancers combined, the five-year relative survival rate for distant-stage disease has more than doubled over the past three decades, increasing from 17% in the mid-1990s to 36% during 2016-2022.

New frontiers in cancer research

In addition to documenting recent progress against cancer, the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026 explores several emerging and ongoing areas of research.

GLP-1 use and cancer risk

Weight loss interventions, including glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, may reduce the risk of developing obesity-related cancers:

• A recent study found that semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) use was associated with a 12% reduction in obesity-related cancer risk.
• In a separate study, GLP-1 use among individuals with type 2 diabetes was associated with a 40% and 46% lower risk of esophageal and colorectal cancer, respectively, compared with insulin therapy.
• GLP-1 use may also be associated with reductions in the risk of skin, breast, prostate, hematologic, and some gynecologic cancers.

As the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026 explains, however, evidence regarding GLP-1 use and cancer risk reduction remains inconsistent. A large review of 48 clinical trials involving more than 94,000 participants treated with GLP-1s found no significant reduction in the overall risk of obesity-related cancers. Other studies have found that GLP-1 use may increase the risk of some cancers. For example, liraglutide (Victoza/Saxenda) use increased the risk of thyroid and respiratory cancer by 70% and 62%, respectively.

In short, the role of these drugs in cancer prevention, while promising, requires further investigation.

Artificial intelligence

AI is enabling faster and more efficient approaches to cancer research and clinical care. According to the report:

• AI can accelerate basic research discoveries. Researchers recently combined AI with advanced spatial imaging technologies to generate high-resolution maps of tumors, revealing the spatial organization and interactions of cancer and immune cells within the tumor microenvironment.
• AI is reshaping cancer drug development. Using one recently developed AI model, researchers screened approximately 10,000 human proteins against more than 500 million compounds, identifying more than 2 million candidate molecules.
• AI demonstrates benefits in cancer screening and early detection, improving the interpretation of routine medical images and allowing for more accurate analysis of complex digital images of tissue samples, as reflected by recent FDA approvals of several AI-assisted devices and software tools.
• AI-driven technologies are improving clinicians’ ability to predict patient outcomes, personalize treatment plans, and enhance clinical trial design. They also may help prevent burnout among health care providers.

Cancer vaccines

After decades of research and steady progress, preventive and therapeutic cancer vaccines are gaining momentum in the clinic and represent a promising treatment strategy for many different types of cancer. According to the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026, new technologies are allowing researchers to improve vaccine design, identify new tumor-specific targets, and optimize combinations with other therapies. Recent advances include:

• A small individualized pancreatic cancer vaccine trial has led to durable remissions in patients such as Donna Gustafson, who shared her story in this year’s report.
• Patients with high-risk melanoma who received an individualized mRNA neoantigen vaccine alongside immunotherapy after surgery experienced sustained improvements in recurrence-free and distant metastasis-free survival compared with immunotherapy alone.
• In patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, an individualized mRNA vaccine generated durable neoantigen-specific T-cell responses, with most patients remaining relapse-free for up to six years after vaccination.
• A small clinical trial testing Nous-209, an mRNA-based vaccine designed to invoke the immune response against cells carrying Lynch syndrome-associated gene mutations, found that the vaccine was safe, caused no serious side effects, and triggered a strong, durable immune response in people with Lynch syndrome.

Despite progress, cancer remains a threat

While new technologies and treatments are bringing substantial hope and improving outcomes for many patients, cancer still afflicts millions of Americans. In 2026, it is estimated that more than 2.1 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed, and more than 626,000 people will die from cancer in the United States alone. By 2050, the number of new cancer cases in the United States is projected to surpass 2.5 million, a 19% increase from the current number.

Moreover, survival rates remain stubbornly low for some cancers. For example, between 2016 and 2022, the overall five-year relative survival rate was 13.7% for pancreatic cancer and 6.6% for glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, compared with 91.9% for female breast cancer and 98.2% for prostate cancer.

As discussed in the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026, the growing incidence of early-onset cancers, defined as cancers diagnosed in people aged 18 to 49 years, has emerged as a pressing public health concern in recent years. Globally, cancer incidence among individuals under the age of 50 increased by nearly 80% between 1990 and 2019. While incidence rates are increasing across many different cancers, certain gastrointestinal cancers-such as colorectal, stomach, and esophageal cancers-have contributed disproportionally to the rise in early-onset cancers. Researchers have identified a number of overlapping risk factors that may be driving these increases, including rising obesity rates, more sedentary lifestyles, greater exposure to environmental pollutants, and shifts in dietary patterns.

Cancer also exerts a significant financial toll on individuals and society. In the United States, the direct costs associated with cancer care, many of which are borne by patients, were estimated to be more than $236 billion in 2020. The overall economic impact of cancer, including indirect costs and lost productivity, is far higher and expected to grow. One analysis cited in the report estimates that cancer will cost the U.S. economy $5.3 trillion over the next three decades, thus calling attention to the important role of cancer research in averting such adverse effects on the U.S. economy.

AACR calls on policymakers to protect cancer research for the benefit of patients

As demonstrated throughout this year’s report, decades of federal investment in cancer research have led to remarkable advances for patients. Progress in cancer prevention, early detection, treatment, and survivorship has helped individuals in every community live longer, healthier lives. This progress will only continue, however, if Congress, the Administration, federal agencies, and state policymakers protect the systems that make meritorious scientific and medical research possible.

Most urgently, Congress must stop the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from finalizing or implementing its proposed rule, “Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance.” As discussed in previous AACR statements, this proposal would inject political considerations into funding decisions and broaden federal agencies’ authority to terminate grants for reasons unrelated to scientific merit or recipient performance. Thankfully, bipartisan action in Congress has blocked the rule through December 11, 2026. A temporary delay, however, is not a lasting solution.

At this pivotal moment, the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2026 ends with a strong Call to Action urging policymakers to stand firmly in support of cancer research and cancer patients and to ensure that federal grantmaking remains guided by evidence, scientific merit, transparency, and accountability:

Sustain the foundations of discovery science and medicine

• Provide robust and sustained federal investment in medical and cancer research with at least $51.303 billion for NIH and at least $7.999 billion for NCI in fiscal year 2027.
• Ensure that federal research funds are implemented as Congress intended. When funding is delayed, narrowed, redirected, or structured in ways that reduce the number of meritorious grants supported, the consequences negatively impact the entire cancer research enterprise and, ultimately, the lives of patients who are waiting for better options.
• Prioritize and sustain the cancer research workforce.

Protect scientific integrity and independence

• Preserve scientific merit, not political or ideological considerations, as the foundation of federal research funding.
• Safeguard the stability of active research awards and clinical trials. Active research grants should not be terminated for reasons unrelated to recipient performance, scientific integrity, or responsible stewardship of federal funds.
• Protect researchers’ ability to publish and share scientific findings to maximize innovation. Accessing the scientific literature, participating in scientific and clinical conferences, and exchanging knowledge with colleagues are essential to scientific progress and to ensuring that the public benefits from taxpayer-funded research.
• Apply rigorous, risk-based oversight to international scientific collaboration. Protecting research integrity and national security is essential, but oversight should be targeted and proportionate to risk.

Ensure that every patient benefits from progress against cancer

• Strengthen FDA’s ability to translate discoveries into benefits for cancer patients.
• Sustain evidence-based public health programs that prevent cancer and promote earlier detection.
• Modernize the infrastructure that connects research and care by investing in interoperable data systems, responsible digital health technologies, the cancer workforce, and community-based care infrastructure.
• Remove barriers to cancer prevention and care through expanding access to evidence-based prevention and screening services, broadening participation in clinical trials, and supporting comprehensive treatment and survivorship care.

“As this year’s AACR Cancer Progress Report illustrates, decades of robust, sustained, and predictable federal investment in cancer research have transformed patient care and saved millions of lives,” said AACR Chief Executive Officer Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc). “Advances in our understanding of cancer and in the technologies available to cancer researchers and oncologists mean that the promise and momentum of scientific discovery have never been greater. If we are to continue making progress for the millions of Americans affected by cancer, it is essential that Congress protect funding for cancer research as well as the rigorous federal grantmaking system that has helped establish the United States as the global scientific leader. Only by sustaining this commitment to meritorious research, free of political interference, will we be able to discover the next generation of scientific breakthroughs that lead to lifesaving cancer cures.”