Testing for the EGFR mutation and
ALK rearrangements and the use of targeted therapies have given lung cancer patients the chance for survival, along with improved quality of life and time with loved ones.
However, the presence of EGFR mutations and
ALK rearrangements is low in unselected NSCLC, 9.5 % and 3.9 %, respectively.
«Testing for EGFR mutations,
ALK rearrangements is cost - effective in NSCLC..»
All patients had both CTCs with
ALK rearrangements and CTCs with ALK copy number gain before treatment and at two months.
After enriching for CTCs, the researchers analyzed the samples for
ALK rearrangements and for an increase in the number of copies of the ALK gene.
Patients with
ALK rearrangements do not respond to EGFR - TKIs, but are sensitive to other targeted therapies (such as ceretinib).
In his own practice, Chirieac is routinely examining for the presence of
ALK rearrangements for patients with mesothelioma and educating his residents about this new finding.
«This study demonstrates the value of testing lung cancer tissue for
an ALK rearrangement, and it underscores the potential of cancer genomics to target cancer treatments to each patient,» says the study's senior author, Pasi A. Jänne, MD, PhD, who is the director of the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology of Dana - Farber.
Ceritinib provides longer progression - free survival than chemotherapy in crizotinib - pre-treated patients with non-small-cell lung cancer harbouring
an ALK rearrangement, according to results of the phase III ASCEND - 5 study presented at the ESMO 2016 Congress in Copenhagen.
Not exact matches
The woman's tumour had a genetic
rearrangement that produced a misshapen version of the
ALK protein, so her doctors first administered the drug crizotinib, which inhibits the action of
ALK.
«Rare genetic cause of peritoneal mesothelioma points to targeted therapy: Genetic
rearrangement in the
ALK gene found in young women with mesothelioma may be targetable with FDA - approved drugs.»
They identified
ALK - positive mesotheliomas by immunohistochemistry; confirmed with fluorescence in situ hybridization; and performed targeted next - generation sequencing of tumor DNA and RNA to get a full picture of the exact genetic
rearrangement underpinning the disease.
Now, through an unexpected observation and a meticulous study of patients seen at Brigham and Women's Hospital, BWH investigators have added a fourth cause to the list: a genetic
rearrangement in the
ALK gene, observed in three patients with peritoneal mesothelioma.
About 4 percent of NSCLCs are driven by genetic aberrations called
ALK gene
rearrangements, according to Farace.
Multiplexed genetic screening for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (
ALK) gene
rearrangements and subsequent biomarker - guided treatment is cost - effective compared with standard chemotherapy treatment without any molecular testing in the metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) setting in the United States.
Dorothy Romanus, lead author of the study, states «this analysis supports the value of multiplexed testing for EGFR and
ALK gene
rearrangements followed by molecularly - guided therapy in decisions surrounding coverage of related testing and targeted therapy.
• Testing revealed an
ALK gene
rearrangement when a sample of a patient's uterine leiomyosarcoma was profiled.