Biden speaks at Rice University about Cancer Moonshot initiative

Effort aims to speed up progress toward cure

HOUSTON – Vice President Joe Biden spoke at Rice University Friday afternoon about the fight against cancer.

During President Barack Obama’s most recent State of the Union address, he tasked Biden with heading up the White House Cancer Moonshot, an initiative aimed at speeding up progress toward a cure for cancer.

Dr. Jill Biden introduced her husband to the crowd, which consisted mostly of students, in the Tudor Fieldhouse.

The vice president praised the MD Anderson Cancer Center, where his late son, Beau Biden, was treated for brain cancer.

“If there are any angels in heaven, they are all the nurses and doctors,” Biden said. "The way they cared not only for Beau, but also for my son and daughter who were grieving and in pain, the way they cared for Beau’s children and for Jill and I.”

The vice president said one day, thanks to budding research and technology, there will be vaccines that prevent many forms of cancer.

“We can already do it with cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine,” Biden said. “We have the technology that allows us to do things we were never able to do even five years ago.”

Biden headed to Austin after his speech at Rice for a fundraiser Friday evening.