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Health

Physics not biology may be key to beating cancer

Billions of dollars spent on cancer research have yielded no great breakthrough yet. There are other ways to attack the problem, says physicist Paul Davies

By Paul Davies

2 January 2013

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

A cultured breast cancer cell starts to migrate outwards

(Image: Steve Gschmeissner/Science Photo Library)

AS THE US faces up to its “fiscal cliff” of massive spending cuts, a major issue is burgeoning health costs. High on the list of those costs is cancer therapy, with the clamour for hugely expensive drugs – many of which have little or no clinical benefit – set to grow as baby boomers age.

Cancer research swallows billions of dollars a year, but the life expectancy for someone diagnosed with cancer that has spread to other parts of the body has changed little over several decades. Therapy…

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