Targeting rare and non-canonical driver variants in NSCLC – an uncharted clinical field

Patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) often present with metastatic disease, have a poor prognosis, and are leading cancer-related deaths worldwide. [1] Life expectancy with palliative chemotherapy alone does not exceed one-and-a half years.[2 –4] Recently, the development of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) has facilitated long-term disease control in about 20–30 % of metastatic NSCLC and median overall survival approaching 2 years.[3–6] Nevertheless, the implementation of targeted therapies, such as kinase inhibitors for EGFR/BR AF/ALK/ROS1-mutated tumors have facilitated even longer survival gains in eligible patients.[7] For targeted treatments, patient selection using molecular profiling is essential in order to spare non-responders from futile treatment, which—aside from the financial burden—might cause unwanted sid e effects and shorten life expectancy.

Source: Lung Cancer - February 19, 2021 Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Anna-Lena Volckmar, Petros Christopoulos, Martina Kirchner, Michael Allg äuer, Olaf Neumann, Jan Budczies, Eugen Rempel, Peter Horak, Julia Glade, Hannah Goldschmid, Huriye Seker-Cin, Regine Brandt, Mark Kriegsmann, Jonas Leichsenring, Hauke Winter, Mart Source Type: research