Clinical relevance of circulating activin A and follistatin in small cell lung cancer

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC; accounting for approximately 13% –15% of all lung cancers) is a highly aggressive and widely metastatic malignancy with more than 200,000 new patients annually worldwide [1]. Although in some cases patients with localized limited-stage disease can be cured with surgery (and adjuvant chemoradiotherapy), the vast majority of patien ts are diagnosed with extensive-stage disease when the survival rates are poor (5-year net survival is less than 7%) [2–4]. Therefore, early diagnosis is crucial in order to improve survival outcomes.
Source: Lung Cancer - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Source Type: research