New 1-CURE program to transform cancer care with one low-cost, widely accessible treatment 

ARPA-H program to shorten treatment time from months to days

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today announced a new research and development effort called One Comprehensive Universal Radiotherapy for Everyone (1-CURE). 1-CURE will develop a radiotherapy treatment to battle all types of cancer, including metastatic and pediatric cancers, in a single, fast, low-cost, widely available procedure. 

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, with more than 2 million new cases and 600,000 cancer-related deaths per year. It is the leading cause of disease-related death in children. For patients and families, a cancer diagnosis often means months of grueling appointments, painful side effects, and steep costs. 

“Every year, millions of Americans hear ‘you have cancer’ and face grueling treatment and crushing costs," said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. "Today, ARPA-H is launching 1-CURE to develop an affordable radiotherapy that treats multiple cancers—even advanced disease—in a single intervention. This effort will reduce both the physical and financial toll of cancer and expand access to life-saving care.” 

More than half of people with cancer face very high treatment costs, which can lead to delaying or skipping potentially life-saving care. Radiotherapy is a key pillar of cancer care today, especially for pediatric cancer, but serious side effects are common, and effectiveness is limited when tumors stop responding. 

“1-CURE is designed to fundamentally change what it means to get a cancer diagnosis,” said Alicia Jackson, Ph.D., ARPA-H Director. “By uniting cutting-edge radiotherapy technologies with smart biomaterials, this program aims to move patients from months of grueling, expensive treatment to a single, highly targeted intervention. If we succeed, we won’t just improve the lives of millions of Americans, we’ll also spur a new wave of biomedical innovation, lowering costs and strengthening the U.S. position at the forefront of global cancer care.” 

If successful, 1-CURE could lead to a transformative one-time treatment that reduces side effects and long-term disability from cancer and its treatment. Patients could see major improvements in quality of life and ability to work and care for their families. The program could also reduce cancer-related out-of-pocket and direct healthcare costs in the United States by billions of dollars every year.  

1-CURE will support research to combine two advanced technologies: smart radiotherapy biomaterials (SRBs) and abscopal treatment planning system (ATPS) synergistically with ultra-high dose rate (FLASH) radiotherapy (FLASH-RT). Traditional radiotherapy usually requires many treatment sessions over several weeks or months, with each session lasting several minutes and using lower doses. In contrast, FLASH-RT can deliver a very high dose of radiotherapy in less than one second and has been shown in early studies to cause less damage to healthy tissue. SRBs and ATPS can expand the capability of FLASH-RT to tackle tumors that are either metastatic or resistant to traditional RT. 

“The 1-CURE program aims to develop the first universal radiotherapy treatment effective against all cancers by combining safe FLASH radiotherapy—to expose tumor markers—with immune-boosting smart nanomaterials that train the immune system to eliminate both local and metastatic tumors and prevent recurrence,” said Wilfred Ngwa, Ph.D., 1-CURE Program Manager. “The program will bring together cross-disciplinary and industry expertise—integrating physics, immunology, materials science, AI, engineering, clinical oncology, and advanced manufacturing—to deliver a revolutionary cancer treatment that is both affordable and accessible to all.” 

The program seeks proposals in two main technical areas: multifunctional immune-boosting smart radiotherapy biomaterials (SRBs) that guide treatment and deliver sustained immune-enhancing agents; and an AI-driven treatment planning system to ensure maximum effectiveness with minimal toxicity. 

ARPA-H expects that teams will be needed to address the full goals of 1-CURE. Prospective proposers are encouraged to form multidisciplinary teams with a range of technical expertise.  

Learn more about 1-CURE on its program page, including details about the solicitation and Proposers’ Day registration.