Biden admin launches precision cancer surgery effort

Surgery is often the first option for the approximately 2 million Americans diagnosed with cancer each year. But doctors can't always distinguish cancer cells from surrounding tissue in the operating room, which can lead to more surgeries, longer recoveries and cancer recurrence, the administration said.

• The agency anticipates making multiple awards to develop tools that help localize tumors and healthy structures.
• "It’s an exciting horizon in cancer research and development that could save and extend many lives," Biden said in a statement.

Background: ARPA-H is modeled on the Pentagon's research arm DARPA and focuses on breakthrough technologies to fight cancer, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes and other afflictions.

The $2.5 billion agency launched its first program this spring, to develop ways to help the body repair joints damaged by osteoarthritis without needing surgery.