Congratulations on the award! What gives you optimism about the future of prevention research?

What gives me great optimism is that now we are advancing our understanding to see that cancer is not just simply a disease to treat, but a process that can be intercepted long before it becomes lethal. Several developments are converging at once in a way that feels genuinely transformative.

First, our understanding of the biology of the cancerisation process has advanced dramatically. We now know that inflammation, immune dysregulation, aging, metabolism, environmental exposures, and inherited susceptibility all interact over many years before invasive cancer develops. This creates multiple opportunities for intervention.

Second, technology is finally catching up with biology. Advances in genomics, epigenomics, proteomics, lipidomics, AI-driven analytics, and longitudinal population datasets are allowing us to detect molecular changes far earlier than we ever could before. The idea of identifying high-risk individuals and intervening before a tumour fully emerges is becoming much more realistic. Multi-cancer early detection platforms, liquid biopsies, and increasingly sophisticated imaging approaches all have the potential to shift cancer care upstream.

Third, immunology is opening entirely new doors for prevention. The success of immunotherapy in advanced disease raises the exciting possibility that immune modulation may ultimately prevent progression from premalignancy to invasive cancer. Vaccination strategies, immune interception approaches, and manipulation of the tumour microenvironment may become central components of future prevention efforts.

I’m also optimistic because prevention research is becoming more interdisciplinary and collaborative. Historically, prevention was sometimes viewed as less exciting than therapeutics. That perception has changed. Today, cancer biologists, computational scientists, epidemiologists, immunologists, engineers, and population scientists are increasingly working together. Several organisations have elevated prevention and interception as major priorities, and philanthropy is helping accelerate innovative, higher-risk ideas that federal funding alone often cannot support.

Cancer prevention research has historically struggled to attract the same level of funding and prestige as therapeutic development, what changes are needed to rebalance that?

The system still disproportionately rewards short-term therapeutic advances over long-horizon prevention strategies, even though prevention has the potential to produce the greatest population-level benefit.

One important change is cultural. Prevention research should no longer be viewed as secondary to therapeutics. Preventing cancer is every bit as intellectually challenging and scientifically sophisticated as treating advanced disease. In many ways, it is harder. Understanding the earliest molecular and cellular events that drive carcinogenesis requires deep mechanistic biology, longitudinal human studies, computational modelling, and translational innovation. The field needs stronger recognition that interception and prevention represent frontier science, not simply public health implementation.

Funding structures also need to evolve. Prevention studies are often disadvantaged because they require longer timelines, larger populations, and endpoints that may take years to mature. Traditional grant cycles and review mechanisms are not always well suited for this type of work. Agencies could further expand dedicated prevention and interception initiatives with sustained, longer-duration support mechanisms that recognise the realities of prevention research. Philanthropy can also play an important catalytic role by supporting higher-risk ideas and enabling early-stage translational studies that may later compete successfully for more traditional funding.

Precision oncology has transformed treatment, but precision prevention is still emerging. Which advances do you think are most likely to make prevention more personalised?

Precision prevention is becoming possible because we are gaining the ability to identify who is at risk, why they are at risk, and which interventions are most likely to help that individual. Several advances are driving this shift.

First, genomics and polygenic risk profiling will allow us to better tailor screening and surveillance based on inherited and acquired risk rather than relying primarily on age-based recommendations. Second, technologies such as liquid biopsies, epigenetic profiling, and proteomics may enable us to detect molecular signs of carcinogenesis long before cancer becomes clinically apparent.

I also think inflammation, immune biology, metabolism, and the microbiome will become increasingly important in personalising prevention strategies. Different individuals may benefit from very different approaches – anti-inflammatory interventions, immune modulation, vaccines, metabolic therapies, or microbiome-directed strategies – depending on the biology driving their risk.

Artificial intelligence will further accelerate progress by integrating genomic, clinical, imaging, lifestyle, and environmental data into more dynamic and accurate risk models.

Ultimately, precision prevention will shift cancer prevention from a broad population-based approach to one that is far more individualised, proactive, and biologically informed.

What advice would you give to a young researcher just starting their career in cancer prevention?

My biggest advice would be to recognise that this is one of the most important and intellectually exciting frontiers in oncology. Prevention research may not always generate the same immediate visibility as therapeutics, but its potential impact on human health is enormous.

I would encourage them to think broadly and work across disciplines. The future of prevention will depend on integrating cancer biology, immunology, genomics, aging, metabolism, computational science, epidemiology, and implementation science. The investigators who can bridge these areas will be especially well positioned to make transformative contributions.

I would also encourage patience and persistence. Advances in early detection, molecular risk assessment, immune interception, and AI-driven analytics are creating extraordinary opportunities for innovation.

Most importantly, stay focused on the ultimate goal. Preventing a cancer from ever developing is one of the greatest contributions we can make for patients and society. Even small advances in prevention can save countless lives and reduce tremendous suffering over time.