Introduction to our goals

In order to support our vision 'Together we will beat cancer', Cancer Research UK has created ten goals that, together with our partners, we aim to accomplish by the year 2020.

These goals help to explain our vision and role in beating cancer. We will use them to demonstrate the progress we are making and the impact we hope to have. They will also help us to clarify our priorities.

In May 2007 we launched our new goals with a press release on cancer survival rates.

The goals

Cancer Research UK has developed ten goals to measure our success over the coming years in beating cancer. We will work with our partners to achieve the following by 2020:

1. People will know how to reduce their risk of cancer – Three-quarters of the UK public will be aware of the main lifestyle choices they can make to reduce their risk of getting cancer
2. The number of smokers will fall dramatically – Four million fewer adults will be smokers, preventing thousands of new cases of cancer every year
3. People under 75 will be less likely to get cancer – The chances of a person developing cancer up to the age of 75 will fall from more than one in four to one in five
4. Cancer will be diagnosed earlier – Two-thirds of all cancer cases will be diagnosed at a stage when the cancer can be successfully treated
5. We will understand how cancer starts and develops – We will have a detailed understanding of the causes and changes in the body in two-thirds of all cases of cancer
6. There will be better treatments with fewer side effects – Treatments that accurately target the cancer and have few serious side effects will be available for at least half of all patients
7. More people will survive cancer – Survival rates for all common cancers will increase, with more than two-thirds of newly-diagnosed patients living for at least five years
8. We will especially tackle cancer in low income communities – The differences in the risk of dying from cancer between the most affluent and the least affluent will be reduced by half
9. People with cancer will get the information they need – At least nine out of ten patients will be able to access the information they need at the time of diagnosis and during treatment
10. We will continue to fight cancer beyond 2020 – Sufficient scientists, doctors, nurses and infrastructure will be in place to ensure continued rapid progress in the fight against cancer beyond 2020

Working together

We can only achieve our goals by working together within Cancer Research UK and with our partners. We hope that these goals will help us to focus on common goals and ensure we are working together constructively to achieve them.

We want to work with people who share our vision – from Government, pharmaceutical companies, and professional and public health bodies to other charities and medical research organisations, as well as people affected by cancer and the general public.

None of this work will be possible without the dedication and commitment of our supporters. They provide all of the vital funds that will allow us to pursue our ambitious plans.