Thoracic Key

Abstract Identification of pathologic and cytologic features of the different histologic types of lung cancer is critical for diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. The role that pathologists play in…

Summary of Key Points • Techniques for the optimal triage and preparation of small specimens for diagnosis and ancillary studies are provided. • For optimal results, a standardized protocol and…

Abstract The development of next-generation sequencing technologies has made it possible to characterize the genomic alterations in a tumor in an unbiased manner. A number of first- and next-generation sequencing…

Summary of Key Points • Of key importance is whether a prognostic marker is also a predictive marker for therapeutic benefit. • As predictive biomarkers become integral in the use…

Abstract Epigenetic alterations, layered onto the genome, determine gene expression patterns and include histone modifications, chromatin remodeling, and DNA methylation, with implications for detection, prognostication, and therapy in lung cancer….

Abstract A better understanding of the impact of gene amplification and gene fusion in lung cancer has resulted from studies focusing on genomic and chromosomal factors and mechanisms causally related…

Abstract Lung cancer is no more a “male disease” and an exponential increase in the incidence of the disease among females has been registered during the last 40 years. In…

Summary of Key Points • Most people with lung cancer are symptomatic at the time of initial presentation; however, between 5% and 15% of people may be asymptomatic. • Alarming…

Summary of Key Points • Humoral and cellular immune dysregulation in the tumor microenvironment contributes to immune evasion, a key hallmark of lung cancer. • Immunosuppressive mechanisms observed in lung…