Editors Choice
PTEN Loss Expands the Histopathologic Diversity and Lineage Plasticity of Lung Cancers Initiated by Rb1/Trp53 Deletion
High-grade neuroendocrine tumors of the lung such as SCLC are recalcitrant cancers for which more effective systemic therapies are needed. Despite their histopathologic and molecular heterogeneity, they are generally treated as a single disease entity with similar chemotherapy regimens. Whereas marked clinical responses can be observed, they are short-lived. Inter- and intratumoral heterogeneity is considered a confounding factor in these unsatisfactory clinical outcomes, yet the origin of this heterogeneity and its impact on therapeutic responses is not well understood.A Phase 1 Study Evaluating Rovalpituzumab Tesirine in Frontline Treatment of Patients With Extensive-Stage SCLC
Rovalpituzumab tesirine (Rova-T) is an antibody-drug conjugate targeting DLL3, a Notch pathway ligand highly expressed on SCLC cells. Rova-T was evaluated alone or in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy (cisplatin or carboplatin combined with etoposide [CE]) in frontline treatment of extensive-stage SCLC.Rovalpituzumab Tesirine as a Maintenance Therapy After First-Line Platinum-Based Chemotherapy in Patients With Extensive-Stage–SCLC: Results From the Phase 3 MERU Study
Rovalpituzumab tesirine (Rova-T) is an antibody-drug conjugate targeting DLL3, an atypical Notch ligand expressed in SCLC tumors. We evaluated the efficacy of Rova-T versus placebo as maintenance therapy in patients with extensive-stage–SCLC after platinum-based chemotherapy.Efficacy and Safety of Rovalpituzumab Tesirine Compared With Topotecan as Second-Line Therapy in DLL3-High SCLC: Results From the Phase 3 TAHOE Study
DLL3, an atypical Notch ligand, is expressed in SCLC tumors but is not detectable in normal adult tissues. Rovalpituzumab tesirine (Rova-T) is an antibody-drug conjugate containing a DLL3-targeting antibody tethered to a cytotoxic agent pyrrolobenzodiazepine by means of a protease-cleavable linker. The efficacy and safety of Rova-T compared with topotecan as second-line therapy in patients with SCLC expressing high levels of DLL3 (DLL3-high) was evaluated.American Radium Society Appropriate Use Criteria on Radiation Therapy for Extensive-Stage SCLC
The standard-of-care therapy for extensive-stage SCLC has recently changed with the results of two large randomized trials revealing improved survival with the addition of immunotherapy to first-line platinum or etoposide chemotherapy. This has led to a lack of clarity around the role of consolidative thoracic radiation and prophylactic cranial irradiation in the setting of chemoimmunotherapy.Durvalumab in Combination with Olaparib in Patients with Relapsed SCLC: Results from a Phase II Study
Despite high tumor mutationburden, immune checkpoint blockade has limited efficacy in SCLC. We hypothesized that poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibition could render SCLC more susceptible to immune checkpoint blockade.EGFR-Mutant SCLC Exhibits Heterogeneous Phenotypes and Resistance to Common Antineoplastic Drugs
Approximately 5% of patients with EGFR-activating mutations acquire EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) resistance through SCLC transformation. However, the reason for the poor outcome and the molecular basis of EGFR-mutant SCLC that has transformed from adenocarcinoma remain unclear.Combined Small Cell Carcinoma of the Lung: Is It a Single Entity?
SCLC accounts for 15% and 20% of all lung cancers, with combined SCLC (CSCLC) comprising 2% to 5%. Little is known about the clinical characteristics and molecular changes associated with the various histologic components.Longitudinal Cell-Free DNA Analysis in Patients with Small Cell Lung Cancer Reveals Dynamic Insights into Treatment Efficacy and Disease Relapse
Patients with SCLC have a poor prognosis and limited treatment options. Because access to longitudinal tumor samples is very limited in patients with this disease, we chose to focus our studies on the characterization of plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) for rapid, noninvasive monitoring of disease burden.Small Cell Lung Cancer Exhibits Frequent Inactivating Mutations in the Histone Methyltransferase KMT2D/MLL2: CALGB 151111 (Alliance)
SCLC is a lethal neuroendocrine tumor type that is highly prone to metastasis. There is an urgency to understand the mutated genes that promote SCLC, as there are no approved targeted therapies yet available. SCLC is rarely resected, limiting the number of samples available for genomic analyses of somatic mutations.Longitudinal Brain Changes Associated with Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation in Lung Cancer
The toxic effects of prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) and platinum-based chemotherapy on cognition in the lung cancer population have not yet been well established. In the present study we examined the longitudinal neuropsychological and brain structural changes observed in patients with lung cancer who were undergoing these treatments.The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer Lung Cancer Staging Project: Proposals for the Revision of the Clinical and Pathologic Staging of Small Cell Lung Cancer in the Forthcoming Eighth Edition of the TNM Classification for Lung Cancer
Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is commonly classified as either limited or extensive, but the Union for International Cancer Control TNM Classification of Malignant Tumours seventh edition (2009) recommended tumor, node, and metastasis (TNM) staging based on analysis of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) database.Screening with Low-Dose Computed Tomography Does Not Improve Survival of Small Cell Lung Cancer
Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) constitutes a distinct component of symptomatic or advanced-stage lung cancers in clinical practice and in lung cancer screening trials. The purpose of this study was to describe the outcome of SCLC in lung cancer screening trials and compare the frequency of SCLC in our cohort with that in the major lung cancer screening trials.The IASLC Lung Cancer Staging Project: The New Database to Inform the Eighth Edition of the TNM Classification of Lung Cancer
The analyses of the retrospective database of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), consisting of more than 81,000 evaluable patients diagnosed with lung cancer between 1990 and 2000, formed the basis of recommendations to the Union for International Cancer Control and the American Joint Committee on Cancer for the revision of the sixth edition of the tumor, node, and metastasis (TNM) classification of lung cancer. However, despite the large number of patients, not all descriptors could be validated.
