Role of Survivin in EGFR Inhibitor–Induced Apoptosis in Non–Small Cell Lung Cancers Positive for EGFR Mutations

Cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality in the world. Choosing the best treatment is dependent on making the right diagnosis. The diagnostic process has been based on light microscopy and the identification of the organ of tumor origin. Yet we now know that cancer is driven by molecular processes, and that these do not necessarily segregate by organ of origin. Fortunately, revolutionary changes in technology have enabled rapid genomic profiling. It is now apparent that neoplasms classified uniformly (e.g., non-small cell lung cancer) are actually comprised of up to 100 different molecular entities. For instance, tumors bearing ALK alterations make up about 4% of non-small cell lung cancers, and tumors bearing epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, approximately 5% to 10%. Importantly, matching patients to therapies targeted against their driver molecular aberrations has resulted in remarkable response rates. There is now a wealth of evidence supporting a divide-and-conquer strategy. Herein, we provide a concise primer on the current state-of-the-art of molecular profiling in the cancer clinic.

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Role of XIAP in inhibiting cisplatin-induced caspase activation in non-small cell lung cancer cells: A small molecule Smac mimic sensitizes for chemotherapy-induced apoptosis by enhancing caspase-3 activation

Experimental Cell Research ◽

10.1016/j.yexcr.2006.12.011 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 313 (6) ◽

pp. 1215-1224 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Agnieszka Checinska ◽

Bas S.J. Hoogeland ◽

Jose A. Rodriguez ◽

Giuseppe Giaccone ◽

Frank A.E. Kruyt

Keyword(s):

Lung Cancer ◽

Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽

Cancer Cells ◽

Small Molecule ◽

Caspase 3 ◽

Small Cell ◽

Caspase Activation ◽

Small Cell Lung ◽

Induced Apoptosis

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Pulmonary Lymphoepithelioma-like Carcinoma

Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine ◽

10.5858/arpa.2018-0149-rs ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 143 (8) ◽

pp. 1027-1030 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sakda Sathirareuangchai ◽

Kirk Hirata

Keyword(s):

Tumor Cells ◽

Pulmonary Involvement ◽

Undifferentiated Carcinoma ◽

Small Cell ◽

Egfr Mutations ◽

Small Cell Lung ◽

Rare Type ◽

Lung Cancers ◽

Barr Virus ◽

Asian Populations

Pulmonary lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma is a rare type of non–small cell lung cancer. The tumor is usually discovered in young, nonsmoking Asian populations. The patients are diagnosed at an earlier stage and have a better prognosis than those with other non–small cell lung cancers. Histologically, the tumor morphology is indistinguishable from undifferentiated carcinoma of the nasopharynx. It is characterized by nests or diffuse sheets of syncytial tumor cells, which show round to oval vesicular nuclei with prominent nucleoli, along with an admixed heavy lymphocytic and plasma cell infiltrate. The presence of Epstein-Barr virus in the tumor cells is crucial for the diagnosis. The differential diagnoses include lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma from other sites and pulmonary involvement of lymphoma. EGFR mutations and ALK rearrangements are not commonly found in lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma, in contrast to programmed death ligand-1 expression, which is shown in a majority of cases.

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