CHICAGO — New research shows a sharp escalation in the weapons race against cancer, with several high-tech approaches long dreamed of but not possible or successful until now.

At a recent conference of more than 30,000 cancer specialists, scientists reported:

• New “smart” drugs that deliver powerful poisons directly to cancer cells while leaving healthy ones alone.
• A new tool that helps the immune system attack a broad range of cancer types.
• Treatments aimed at new genes and cancer pathways, plus better tests to predict which patients will benefit from them.

“I see major advances being made in big diseases” such as breast and prostate cancers, said Dr. Richard Pazdur, cancer drug chief at the federal Food and Drug Administration, which recently announced a new policy intended to speed breast cancer drugs to the market.

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