Fusion research has been going on for 50 years.
Do you really think that following the current line of research is going to end up with "aha! If only we'd though of this first, we could make the reactor 100 times smaller and cheaper?" Or find a way of fusion without generating neutron flux? That isn't going to go away.
It's a technological dead-end. I suspect the only reason it has continued this long is that in the presence of nuclear test bans, it's the only way to continue to research the related physics of fusion weapons.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
