Continued research needed on treatment for women with lung cancer who are never smokers

This lung cancer associated with EGFR mutation and ER expression

2013-06-26

(Press-News.org) DENVER – The incidence of lung cancer in women affects an estimated 516,000 women worldwide, of which 100,000 are in the United States and 70,000 in Europe. Until now, lung cancers occurring in women have been treated similarly to lung cancers in men. However, numerous studies have highlighted different characteristics of lung cancer in women. Researchers at the University of Toulouse III in France aim to compare clinical, pathological and biological characteristics of lung cancer in cohorts of women smokers and women never-smokers. They looked at a total of 140 women, 63 never-smokers and 77 former/current smokers who had adenocarcinoma. A study published in the July issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology (JTO), concludes that lung cancer in women who have never smoked is more frequently associated with EGFR mutations and estrogen receptor (ER) overexpression. They observed differential genetic alteration repartition in women according to their tobacco status: 50.8 percent of never-smokers displayed an EGFR mutation versus 10.4 percent of smokers. In contrast, K-Ras was more frequently mutated in smokers (33.8%) than in never-smokers (9.5%). The researchers also observed a higher percentage of estrogen receptors (ER) α expression in patients who never smoked when compared with smokers. "These findings underline the possibility of treatment for women who have never smoked with drugs to target hormonal factors, genetic abnormalities, or both," the authors say. ### The lead author of the paper, Dr. Julien Mazieres, is currently the PI of a randomized phase II trial sponsored by the French Cooperative intergroup (IFTC) named "IFCT 10-03 - LADIE: Lung cancer in women treated with anti-oestrogens and inhibitors of EGFR " specifically dedicated to post-menopausal women. More information can be found at: http://www.ifct.fr/.

About the IASLC: The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) is the only global organization dedicated to the study of lung cancer. Founded in 1974, the association's membership includes more than 3,500 lung cancer specialists in 80 countries. To learn more about IASLC please visit http://www.iaslc.org.

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PET-CT improves care of limited-stage small-cell lung cancer patients

2013-06-26

DENVER – Each year, 13 percent of all newly diagnosed lung cancer patients are diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). Approximately 39 percent of patients with SCLC are diagnosed with limited-stage disease, meaning the cancer is only present in one lung, but may have spread to lymph nodes or tissue between the lungs. These patients are often treated with chemotherapy and definitive radiation therapy. Staging information is essential because of the high propensity for metastatic disease in SCLC, and the identification of metastases can spare patients from the toxicity ...

Study details cancer-promoting mechanisms of overlooked components in secondhand smoke

2013-06-26

Tobacco smoke, diesel exhaust and oil combustion carry polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons – PAHs that are known to cause cancer. But of these PAHs, the obviously dangerous high-molecular-weight PAHs like benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) have received the vast majority of research attention. Their low-molecular-weight cousins have been largely overlooked, in part because studies have shown that these compounds alone aren't very successful at mutating genes in cancer-causing ways. A University of Colorado Cancer Center study published in the journal PLoS One explores two of these low-molecular-weight ...

Vietnam vets with PTSD more than twice as likely to have heart disease

2013-06-26

Male twin Vietnam veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were more than twice as likely as those without PTSD to develop heart disease during a 13-year period, according to a study supported by the National Institutes of Health. This is the first long-term study to measure the association between PTSD and heart disease using objective clinical diagnoses combined with cardiac imaging techniques. "This study provides further evidence that PTSD may affect physical health," said Gary H. Gibbons, M.D., director of the NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood ...

'Active surveillance' may miss aggressive prostate cancers in black men

2013-06-26

A Johns Hopkins study of more than 1,800 men ages 52 to 62 suggests that African-Americans diagnosed with very-low-risk prostate cancers are much more likely than white men to actually have aggressive disease that goes unrecognized with current diagnostic approaches. Although prior studies have found it safe to delay treatment and monitor some presumably slow-growing or low-risk prostate cancers, such "active surveillance" (AS) does not appear to be a good idea for black men, the study concludes. "This study offers the most conclusive evidence to date that broad application ...

Hiding in plain sight: New species of bird discovered in capital city

2013-06-26

A team of scientists with the Wildlife Conservation Society, BirdLife International, and other groups have discovered a new species of bird with distinct plumage and a loud call living not in some remote jungle, but in a capital city of 1.5 million people. Called the Cambodian tailorbird (Orthotomus chaktomuk), the previously undescribed species was found in Cambodia's urbanized capitol Phnom Penh and several other locations just outside of the city including a construction site. It is one of only two bird species found solely in Cambodia. The other, the Cambodian laughingthrush, ...

USC research IDs potential treatment for deadly, HIV-related blood cancer

2013-06-26

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Telecoupling pulls pieces of sustainability puzzle together

2013-06-26

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Human and canine lymphomas share molecular similarities, first large-scale comparison shows

2013-06-26

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New research finds flu shot effective regardless of circulating flu strain

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Delivering the best care to the right patient at the right time

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Continued research needed on treatment for women with lung cancer who are never smokers

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