The other day I mentioned to a new acquaintance that I had done some cancer research in my time and he responded by asking "are we getting anywhere with that?". I know the feeling, I always felt a little overwhelmed by the many different forms of cancer, the high mortality rates and the uncertainties surrounding their causes and treatment potential. I can sympathize with the sense of hopelessness some people might feel when the topic is raised, but the fact is, many forms of cancer are becoming quite well understood and the causes are gradually making themselves known.

I'm not sure if we'll ever be able to cure all kinds of cancer but there are many forms that seem quite treatable, even though we might not have perfected the treatments yet. Biomedical science is moving at an extremely rapid rate and every day there are new discoveries reported. Little by little the pieces are coming together and it's astounding to see where we are now compared to even 20 years ago. New developments in research with stem cells and discoveries in nanomedicine offer countless novel treatment prospects. So, to answer the question, yes, we most certainly are getting somewhere and what an exciting trip!