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Biotech, biomanufacturing get a shot in the arm as US looks to end cancer

November 21, 2022 by Rich Kurtzman, Brand Communications @ Fathym

In this piece

  • “Cancer moonshot” seeks to reduce cancer deaths by 50% over next 25 years
  • Funding for biotechnologies will increase
  • Biomanufacturing to stay in United States, create jobs

You’re (likely) only President once, so why not shoot for the moon?

Joe Biden announced in September his “Cancer Moonshot” aimed at cutting cancer death rates by 50% over the next 25 years.

It mimicked former President John F. Kennedy’s moonshot announcement, which in 1962 he proclaimed the United States would land on the moon before the decade was over.

Just like the literal moonshot, the “cancer moonshot” is a lofty goal. “And in choosing to go to the Moon, President Kennedy said America was doing so, quote, ‘not because [it was] easy, but because [it was] hard,’” Biden said on Sept. 12 from Boston’s John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.

And like the investment in the space race, America is set to put funding into biotechnologies as well as biomanufacturing.

Biotechnologies and biomanufacturing definitions​

Biotechnology is technology that utilizes biological systems, living organisms or parts of this to develop or create different products, per Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

And biomanufacturing refers to the process of using living systems, particularly microorganisms and cell cultures, to produce biological molecules and materials on a commercial scale, per Oxford.

Funding for biotech will increase​

“As part of the supercharged Moonshot, I’ll use my authorities as President to increase funding to break logjam — break logjams and to speed breakthroughs,” Biden said in his speech.

According to the White House fact sheet, $40 million will go to expand the role of biomanufacturing for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), antibiotics and more, while $270 million will go towards developing bio-based materials for defense.

In biomanufacturing:

  • $1 billion will go to developing domestic bioindustrial manufacturing infrastructure
  • $200 million for biosecurity
  • $500 million to create new, sustainable American fertilizer

Funding will go towards:

  • Cancer research
  • Bio soils for more sustainable farming
  • Biofuels to take demand away from oil
  • Develop new wood products and effectively use US forest resources
  • Fostering innovation and leadership by US in bio-sphere

Biomanufacturing to stay in US​

As explained above, biomanufacturing means using living systems to create materials on a commercial scale. Simply, that means creating new fuels which will decrease our need and use of oil.

“DOE will also double efforts, adding an additional $60 million, to de-risk the scale up of biotechnology and biomanufacturing that will lead to commercialization of biorefineries that produce renewable chemicals and fuels that significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, industry, and agriculture,” as explained in the White House fact sheet.

Biomanufacturing isn’t just about inventing and producing a replacement for oil, the US will focus on regenerative medicine and biopharmaceuticals, too.

Over 100 years ago, in 1913, Henry Ford invented the assembly line and the United States was the world’s leader in manufacturing automobiles for 60 years. Now, they’re taking that charge of manufacturing prowess and blending it with the biological world.

Simply, the Biden Administration is looking to invest in the future and health of US citizens. And with hope, the technologies created here will help people across the globe.

Why is this investment important?​

Biden and the White House have made it clear this new investment is important for our future. It will look to cure cancer while also attempting to develop new gene therapies and more. Simultaneously, innovation and development in biofuels will hopefully reduce the risk of climate catastrophe.

And now that they’ve identified this crucial turning point, they don’t want to fall behind like the US did with manufacturing semiconductors, or manufacturing in general.

Biotech has already been important in terms of monitoring people’s own health, and Forbes projects the Internet of Healthcare Things to be a top IoT trend in 2023.

Biotech at Fathym​

Here at Fathym, we’re excited to be ready for the coming biotech revolution as one of the top Colorado IoT companies.

Fathym’s IoT Ensemble features out-of-the-box cloud connectivity for IoT sensors and devices, which are crucial for biotechnologies and biomanufacturing. That includes data visualization, device management, two-way communication, database and API workflows and much more.

Store your data in Fathym’s provisioned Microsoft Azure cloud, or your organization’s Azure cloud.

Fathym’s out-of-the-box cloud solutions can power biotechnology and biomanufacturing vendors or researchers to get their apps off the ground quicker.