Lung Cancer Awareness Month: 2020 Immunotherapy Research Updates November 5, 2020December 14, 2022 CRI Staff On August 7, the U.S. FDA approved a diagnostic test that combines two technologies—liquid biopsy and next-generation sequencing—to guide treatment decisions. This test should identify patients with specific types of mutations of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene in a deadly form of metastatic non-small cell lung cancer. That’s just one emerging technology altering lung cancer treatment. This November for Lung Cancer Awareness Month, we look at the rapidly changing treatment landscape, adapting cancer care in a pandemic, and how we’re working toward a future immune to lung cancer. Treatment Landscape Update Dr. Leena Gandhi, director of the Center for Cancer Therapeutic Innovation at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, led a lung cancer breakout session at the first-ever CRI Virtual Immunotherapy Patient Summit in October. She discussed clinical trials, new combination therapies, and increasing survival rates thanks to immunotherapy. READ FOLLOW-UP Q&A Advocate Perspective Join Oswald Peterson, a metastatic lung cancer veteran, at part 2 of the CRI Virtual Immunotherapy Patient Summit on December 5. He’ll share lessons in self-advocacy, building a support network, and getting the best care possible. This free event connects cancer patients and immunotherapy experts, all from the comfort and safety of your own home. REGISTER FOR THE SUMMIT Lung Cancer and COVID-19 While all cancer patients may need to discuss their specific risks associated with SARS-CoV-2, special consideration must be given to people with lung cancer, due to the respiratory nature of COVID-19. We spoke with Joshua K. Sabari, MD, of the Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone Health, about how the pandemic is impacting care for lung cancer patients. READ Q&A with Dr. Sabari Lung Cancer Patient Story Ron was first diagnosed with cancer in November 2013: colorectal cancer. It was removed with surgery, and doctors continued to monitor his health, which is how his second cancer, lung cancer, was discovered in February 2018. Ron found an oncologist he trusted and together they formed a plan of attack: combining radiation, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy. Read Ron’s Lung Cancer Story Lung Cancer Scientist Spotlight GATA4 is a gene that governs cellular protein production and helps ensure that mutated cells don’t become cancerous. CRI Fellow Xizhi Guo, PhD, has found that GATA4 can restrain tumor growth by modulating immune responses, but the underlying mechanism and molecules involved remain unknown. Now, he is delving into its role during the development of lung cancer. Discover Dr. Guo’s Lung Cancer Research Immunotherapy for Lung Cancer Information Updated On May 26, the U.S. FDA approved the combination of nivolumab (Opdivo), a PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor; ipilimumab (Yervoy), a CTLA-4 checkpoint inhibitor; and platinum-doublet chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer that does not possess mutations in the EGFR or ALK genes. As the research and treatment landscape changes, we keep our immunotherapy for lung cancer information up to date. VIEW LUNG CANCER UPDATE Find a Cancer Clinical Trial A variety of new and promising cancer immunotherapy treatments are only available to patients in clinical trials. Our Immunotherapy Clinical Trial Finder will match you to trials for which you may be eligible, and you can help speed the development of potentially lifesaving drugs for yourself and others. FIND A Cancer Clinical TRIAL Support Lung Cancer Research In 2020, the Cancer Research Institute and the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research launched an innovative clinical trial that aims to demonstrate the utility of a novel, ultra-sensitive biomarker-directed blood test, or liquid biopsy, in assessing lung cancer patient responses to immunotherapy. If this and future studies show that this approach can more accurately characterize these responses to therapy, oncologists may gain a more reliable, less costly, and less invasive means to help them identify earlier in a cancer patient’s treatment course whether immunotherapy may be effective or whether other therapeutic options may offer a better alternative. This Lung Cancer Awareness Month, support lifesaving cancer immunotherapy research. DONATE to Lung Cancer Research Read more: Post navigation How Bacteria Influence Our Health and Immunity Read Story Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month: 2020 Immunotherapy Research Updates Read Story
