LUNG CANCER

Metastatic Lung Cancer with Jared M. Weiss, MD

Don Bergstrom, MD, PhD, chief medical officer, Mersana Therapeutics, discusses the future of XMT-1536 in the treatment of ovarian cancer and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Merck, the manufacturer of pembrolizumab (Keytruda), has announced the FDA has granted priority review to a supplemental biologics license application (sBLA) for the PD-1 inhibitor as a first-line treatment for patients with PD-L1-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

James Jett, MD, professor of Medicine Emeritus, National Jewish Health, discusses the use of endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) in the diagnosis of lung cancer.

A new drug application (NDA) has been submitted for brigatinib (AP26113) as a potential treatment for patients with advanced ALK-positive non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) following resistance or intolerance to crizotinib (Xalkori).

The optimal use of emerging assays that characterize molecular abnormalities from plasma in late-stage non-small cell lung cancer will be to augment tissue biopsies at initial diagnosis and to evaluate patients for second- and third-line therapies.

ROS1 and TRK are two emerging targets that have significant therapeutic promise for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, although they are not commonly considered while doing mutation testing.

Leptomeningeal metastases are more common in patients with non&ndash;small cell lung cancer who harbor <em>EGFR </em>mutations.&nbsp;Tyrosine kinase inhibitors were found to be the optimal treatment method for these patients, especially if they have not yet received a TKI treatment.

Heather Wakelee, MD, associate professor of Medicine (Oncology), Stanford University Medical Center, discusses the evolving role of bevacizumab (Avastin) in the treatment of patients with non&ndash;small cell lung cancer.

Nicola Normanno, MD, chief of the Cell Biology and Biotherapy Unit, INT-Fondazione Pascale, Naples, Italy, discusses the recent data showing that plasma can act as a potential alternative to EGFR mutation analysis in the treatment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer, as well as the current demands for the use of liquid biopsies in this type of treatment.

Although immunotherapies, such as nivolumab (Opdivo) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda), have generated great excitement in the field of squamous non-small cell lung cancer, a number of targeted agents are also gaining recognition.

Deciding the sequencing order of therapies for patients with ALK-positive non&ndash;small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a challenge, as new information on next-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) comes to light, says Robert Doebele, MD, PhD. Testing for ALK translocations can help to determine which therapies NSCLC patients should be receiving, but questions regarding the sequencing of ALK inhibitors still remain.

Review of the currently available and approved therapeutic agents for the management of metastatic squamous cell NSCLC and clinical trials focusing on targeted therapy.

Melissa Johnson, MD, associate director, Lung Cancer Research, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses the use of natural language processing in the diagnosis of lung cancer.

While PD-L1 has been perceived as an important biomarker in the realm of lung cancer, Keith Kerr, BSc, MB, ChB, FRCPath, FRCPE, says it still has a long way to go.

Geoffrey R. Oxnard, MD, specializes in researching molecular mutations in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with a particular emphasis on prognostic and predictive biomarkers. Oxnard spoke with Targeted Oncology about the potential for BRAF-targeting therapies in NSCLC.

Hossein Borghaei, DO, chief, Thoracic Oncology, director, Lung Cancer Risk Assessment, associate professor in the Department of Hematology/Oncology, Fox Chase Cancer Center, discusses the ideal patient population that can potentially benefit from the use of nivolumab in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer.

Plasma-based genetic testing can effectively be used to determine whether a tissue biopsy is necessary for EGFR mutation analysis in patients with non-small cell lung cancer.