[quote=njtosd]
The NIH is supposed to pursue therapeutics that are needed but not commercially justifiable. I wouldn’t say capitalism is the problem – its the failure of government agencies to do what they are supposed to do.[/quote]

The NIH’s stated mission is here, in case anyone is curious: http://www.nih.gov/about/mission.htm

I find the notion that they haven’t “cured cancer” yet as evidence of their “failure” to be laughable if not outrageous. Even the idea of a “cure for cancer” is a naive fantasy, perhaps as best expressed by this comic: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=1162

There are armies of highly intelligent and motivated individuals working on it, and moreover, there is a crystal clear profit motive. So no, I don’t think we can chalk this one up to failure on the part of the NIH, but rather as evidence of the complexity of the universe and the difficulty of the problem at hand.