scholarly journals The Role of Pharmacists in Optimizing Molecular Testing with Evolving Biomarkers and Treatment for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

2021 ◽  
pp. 2240-2256
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Small Cell ◽  
Molecular Testing ◽  
Small Cell Lung ◽  
Braf Mutations ◽  
Emerging Therapies ◽  
Oncology Care

Molecular testing and the development of targeted therapies have revolutionized the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Despite the advantages of molecular testing in patients with NSCLC and guideline recommendations, there is no specific standard testing method, resulting in variable testing practices based on institution protocol and access. Pharmacists can help to improve coordination of care around appropriate testing as results are important in determining the most appropriate targeted treatment course. The majority of patients with NSCLC are tested for PD-L1, EGFR, ALK, ROS1, and BRAF mutations. These biomarkers and their corresponding targeted therapies are more understood than the remaining biomarkers, such as KRAS, RET, MET exon 14 (METex14), and NTRK. Multiple new and emerging therapies target these latter biomarkers, and this article will focus on these lesser-known biomarkers. As the treatment of NSCLC becomes increasingly biomarker-driven and more therapies are added to the armamentarium for the management of NSCLC, pharmacists will be called upon to assist the oncology care team to optimize NSCLC treatment to improve patient outcomes.

Biomarker utilization in non-small cell lung cancer, are we treating after testing?

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 9609-9609
Author(s):  
Elias Makhoul ◽  
Jong Taek Kim ◽  
Wenjuan Zhang ◽  
Jean Raphael Lopategui ◽  
Ani Sarkis Balmanoukian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Targeted Therapy ◽  
Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Small Cell ◽  
Molecular Testing ◽  
Small Cell Lung ◽  
Nsclc Patients

9609 Background: Targeted therapy in EGFR and ALK mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been the standard of care for nearly a decade with subsequent FDA approvals for ROS1 and BRAF V600 mutated NSCLC occurring in 2016 and 2017. However, recent studies have shown suboptimal utilization of genomic profiling results in these patients. In 1 recent study of community oncologists, ~70% of EGFR/ALK+ patients received appropriate targeted therapy, while patients with other gene mutations (including BRAF and ROS1) only received targeted therapy ~30% of the time. Left unanswered was what patients were receiving instead and why. Additionally, it is unknown if this finding is generalizable to the academic setting. We aimed to investigate whether in our patient population, NSCLC patients with actionable mutations received associated FDA approved therapies and if not why. Methods: The pathology database was queried for all NSCLC with molecular testing (including qPCR, FISH and NGS) from 2009 to 2019. Patients with sensitizing EGFR, ALK, ROS1 or BRAF mutations that were detected after the first FDA approval for their respective targeted therapies were included for analysis with those lost to follow up subsequently excluded. Basic demographic and clinical variables were collected as well as treatment records. Results: 2160 NSCLC patients were evaluated (2160 EGFR, 1417 ALK, 810 ROS1, 589 BRAF). 468 patients were identified with targetable mutations (411 EGFR, 46 ALK, 5 ROS1, 6 BRAF). No patient had more than 1 targetable mutation. Of those patients, 248 were at an advanced stage and had clinical follow up (202 EGFR, 37 ALK, 4 ROS1, 5 BRAF). Of those patients 197/202 (97.5%), 33/37 (89.2%), 3/4 (75%) and 1/5 (20%) received EGFR, ALK, ROS1 or BRAF targeted therapy respectively. Across biomarkers 14/248 patients (5.6%) did not receive subsequent targeted therapy. 10 patients (5 EGFR, 3 ALK, 1 ROS1 and 1 BRAF) passed away before targeted therapy could be initiated. Physician choice and missed findings accounted for the remaining four cases. Conclusions: The vast majority of advanced NSCLC patients analyzed in this study received appropriate targeted therapy matched to genomic findings. The main reason (~4% of total cases) that patients did not receive therapy was due to rapidly progressive disease and death before it could be initiated. These findings are at odds with those published from the community setting. This may be due to multiple factors, including clinician education, ease of access to targeted therapies across patient populations and incomplete data in the previous study populations.

Liquid biopsy: Safety and efficacy in a tool for molecular profiling of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e21506-e21506
Author(s):  
Saleha Rizwan ◽  
Zachary Otaibi ◽  
Herman Lo ◽  
Talal Khan ◽  
Rodney E. Wegner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Liquid Biopsy ◽  
Small Cell ◽  
Molecular Testing ◽  
Small Cell Lung ◽  
Liquid Biopsies ◽  
Nsclc Patients

e21506 Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common type of lung cancer with a broad spectrum of targeted therapies already available or in clinical trials. Among the NSCLC patients, 23% to 25% harbor a mutation in a gene associated with approved or emerging targeted therapy. These therapies have changed the therapeutic landscape of NSCLC with significantly improved clinical outcomes in advanced metastatic NSCLC patients. It is imperative to test for these gene alterations in order to identify patients who could potentially benefit from these efficacious targeted therapies and to avoid therapies unlikely to provide clinical benefit. A major limitation in obtaining molecular testing occurs when minimally invasive techniques are used to obtain tissue sample resulting in insufficient yield for testing. In such cases, the utilization of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), commonly known as liquid biopsy, has proven very beneficial. In a study utilizing ctDNA, increased detection rates were found when using ctDNA in addition to tissue testing and a > 98.2% concordance rate was found. We report results of 40 NSCLC patients from our institute who had liquid biopsy with or without tissue profiling done. Methods: We molecularly profiled 40 newly diagnosed advanced NSCLC patients using both tissue and liquid biopsies. Tissue was assayed using the John Hopkins university molecular panel and liquid biopsies were performed by Biocept. Results: 14 out of 40 (35%) patients had insufficient or no tissue for molecular testing. Concordant results were found in 17 out of the 26 (65.4%) patients who had both tissue and liquid molecular testing done. Liquid Biopsy detected additional mutations in 5 (19.2%) patients which were not picked up on tissue and led to change in management in 4 patients. 12 out of 40 (30%) patients had repeat liquid biopsies done at progression of disease with new mutations detected on 4 patients revealing resistance to current treatment and change in treatment. Conclusions: Liquid Biopsy reveals high concordance rates with tissue genotyping and increases rate of detection of targetable mutations in NSCLC. It offers a safe and effective alternative when additional tissue is needed to identify genetic mutations.

scholarly journals EBUS-TBNA Cytological Samples for Comprehensive Molecular Testing in Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 2084
Author(s):  
Roberto Martin-Deleon ◽  
Cristina Teixido ◽  
Carmen Mª Lucena ◽  
Daniel Martinez ◽  
Ainhoa Fontana ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Molecular Characterization ◽  
Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Small Cell ◽  
Endobronchial Ultrasound ◽  
Molecular Testing ◽  
Small Cell Lung ◽  
Transbronchial Needle Aspiration ◽  
Alternative Source

Clinical guidelines promote the identification of several targetable biomarkers to drive treatment decisions in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but half of all patients do not have a viable biopsy. Specimens from endobronchial-ultrasound transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) are an alternative source of material for the initial diagnosis of NSCLC, however their usefulness for a complete molecular characterization remains controversial. EBUS-TBNA samples were prospectively tested for several biomarkers by next-generation sequencing (NGS), nCounter, and immunohistochemistry (PD-L1). The primary objectives were to assess the sensitivity of EBUS-TBNA samples for a comprehensive molecular characterization and to compare its performance to the reference standard of biopsy samples. Seventy-two EBUS-TBNA procedures were performed, and 42 NSCLC patients were diagnosed. Among all cytological samples, 92.9% were successfully genotyped by NGS, 95.2% by nCounter, and 100% by immunohistochemistry. There were 29 paired biopsy samples; 79.3% samples had enough tumor material for genomic genotyping, and 96.6% for PD-L1 immunohistochemistry. A good concordance was found between both sources of material: 88.9% for PD-L1, 100% for NGS and nCounter. EBUS-TBNA is a feasible alternative source of material for NSCLC genotyping and allows the identification of patient candidates for personalized therapies with high concordance when compared with biopsy.

scholarly journals SURG-05. IDEAL TREATMENT REGIMEN FOR PATIENTS WITH ≥1 BRAIN METASTASIS FROM PRIMARY NON-SMALL-CELL LUNG CANCER – A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND NETWORK META-ANALYSIS

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. ii204-ii204
Author(s):  
Karanbir Brar ◽  
Yosef Ellenbogen ◽  
Behnam Sadeghirad ◽  
Jiawen Deng ◽  
Winston Hou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lung Cancer ◽  
Small Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Cell Lung Cancer ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Progression Free Survival ◽  
Small Cell ◽  
Small Cell Lung ◽  
China National Knowledge Infrastructure

Abstract BACKGROUND Brain metastases (BM) are common in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The aim of this study was to assess the comparative effectiveness of treatments for BM from NSCLC. METHODS We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, ClinicalTrials.gov, CENTRAL and references of key studies for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published until October 2018. We also searched the Chinese databases Wanfang Data, Wanfang Med Online, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Chongqing VIP Information for RCTs published until September 2019. Trials including > 10 patients were selected. The primary outcomes were overall survival (OS) and intracranial progression-free survival (PFS). We used a frequentist random-effects model for network meta-analysis and assessed the certainty of evidence using the GRADE approach. RESULTS Among 8798 abstracts, 106 RCTs (9452 patients) met inclusion criteria. Median sample size was 67 (range 25-554). All trials included adult patients with histologically proven NSCLC and >1 BM proven on CT/MRI. Of trials that reported performance status (e.g. ECOG or KPS, n=67), 63/67 excluded patients with non-favorable performance status. Interventions assessed included surgery, WBRT, SRS, targeted therapies (i.e. EGFR/ALK inhibitors), and chemotherapy. Compared to WBRT alone, several interventions demonstrated a statistically significant increase in median OS, including non-targeted chemotherapy + surgery (MD: 415.3 days, 95% CI: 31.3-799.4), WBRT + EGFRi (MD: 200.2 days, 95% CI:146.3-254.1), and EGFRi alone (MD: 169.7 days, 95% CI: 49.7-289.7). Among all interventions, only WBRT + EGFRi showed a significant improvement in median PFS (MD: 108.0 days, 95%CI: 48.5-167.5). CONCLUSIONS Our preliminary analyses indicate an OS and PFS benefit on the addition of EGFR inhibitors to WBRT for the treatment of BMs from NSCLC. Further analyses of hazard ratios for OS/PFS are underway, and subgroup analyses are planned. These data support the growing role of targeted therapies in the treatment of BMs, particularly in susceptible mutant tumours.

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