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Non-smoking Has Different Type of Lung Cancer
Introduction
Cancer is disease that characterized by uncontrolled growth of cell grow and multiplication, and malfunction. Cancer is malignant, because its invasive behaviour. Cancer tissues are dangerous for host because they take oxygen, nutrients, and space from healthy cells and they invade and destroy or reduce the ability of normal tissues to function.
Basic of cancer pathogenesis is genetic transformation due to accumulation of genetic damage either hereditary and/or acquired. Most of cancer cases is acquired, or related to person lifestyle. Smoking habits has been associated with increased risk for having lung cancer.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women and men both in the world. Lung cancer has surpassed breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer deaths in women. In United States in 2009, about 159,390 people were projected to die from lung cancer, which is more than the number of deaths from colon and rectal, breast, and prostate cancer combined. The survival rates in lung cancer is very low, especially when it diagnosed at the later stage. About 2% of those diagnosed with lung cancer that has spread to other areas of the body are alive five years after the diagnosis. Although the survival rates for lung cancers diagnosed at the earliest stage are higher, with approximately 49% surviving for five years or longer.
New Concept
From Clinical observation of oncologist, they admit that lung cancer in non-smokers is different than the smokers. Compared to former and current smokers with lung cancer, non-smokers with lung cancer tend to be diagnosed younger, are more likely to be women and are more likely to have adenocarcinomas, while the smokers tends to have small cell lung cancer or squamous cell carcinoma.
This is suggesting there might be something different going on with tumors in never-smokers. "If we find out lung cancer in never-smokers is a different disease and we can identify what those differences are, maybe we can design specific therapies that target the genetic alterations in never-smokers and improve the prognosis,"said Kelsie Thu, a doctoral candidate at the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver in november 2010.
Then the research is done to evaluate that. From the latest research, scientists compared the genetic characteristics of lung cancer in 30 people who never smoked to tumors in 53 smokers or former smokers. The tumors of people who had non-smokers had twice as many DNA abnormalities as people who were current or former smokers. People who never smoked are also more likely to have a mutation in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene. Never-smokers with lung cancer were also less likely to have the KRAS mutation, which has also been shown in prior research.
In smokers group, it's believed that the tobacco and cigarettes contains carcinogens that cause DNA mutations that lead to the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells when it exposed to someone.
While in nonsmokers, the added genetic mutations suggest other mechanisms are driving the tumor growth. Then it's hypothesized that there is more genomic instability in the non-smokers than the smokers who have lung cancer, and that leads us to believe there may be some other molecular mechanism that is driving the tumor development.
In never-smokers, the challenge is not only coming up with treatments that target the genetic mutations of their tumor, but in identifying people soon enough to help them, said Carbone, a member of the Lung Cancer Foundation of America's scientific advisory board. Nonsmokers tend to take longer to be diagnosed with lung cancer because few suspect they have it, he said. "We often see never-smokers present with advanced, incurable disease," he said.
Implications
Cancer knowledge is developed from time to time, thus impact in therapy and management of cancer. All of oncologist, scientist agree that cancer is best cured at early stage.
Today concept of Cancer Therapy is Individualized therapy, since the same cancer may have different genetic profiles, thus may give a different outcome if we treat with the same drugs.
As we seen in lung cancer, non-smokers tend to have adenocarcinoma type, and have EGFR mutation than smokers. Thus may have different outcome if we treat with same regiment with the smokers. EGFR targetted therapy has been developed, and is being used recently as therapy in advanced stage of lung cancer that have EGFR mutation. From the study, this therapy is promising in therapy of advanced stage of lung cancer.
Take home message
Human knowledge about cancer is developed from time to time. Primary prevention of cancer is important to lower the incidence of cancer. Early detection of cancer is important to lower morbidity and achieve cure. Individualized therapy is a new method and become promising therapy in cancer.
Cancer is disease that characterized by uncontrolled growth of cell grow and multiplication, and malfunction. Cancer is malignant, because its invasive behaviour. Cancer tissues are dangerous for host because they take oxygen, nutrients, and space from healthy cells and they invade and destroy or reduce the ability of normal tissues to function.
Basic of cancer pathogenesis is genetic transformation due to accumulation of genetic damage either hereditary and/or acquired. Most of cancer cases is acquired, or related to person lifestyle. Smoking habits has been associated with increased risk for having lung cancer.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women and men both in the world. Lung cancer has surpassed breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer deaths in women. In United States in 2009, about 159,390 people were projected to die from lung cancer, which is more than the number of deaths from colon and rectal, breast, and prostate cancer combined. The survival rates in lung cancer is very low, especially when it diagnosed at the later stage. About 2% of those diagnosed with lung cancer that has spread to other areas of the body are alive five years after the diagnosis. Although the survival rates for lung cancers diagnosed at the earliest stage are higher, with approximately 49% surviving for five years or longer.
New Concept
From Clinical observation of oncologist, they admit that lung cancer in non-smokers is different than the smokers. Compared to former and current smokers with lung cancer, non-smokers with lung cancer tend to be diagnosed younger, are more likely to be women and are more likely to have adenocarcinomas, while the smokers tends to have small cell lung cancer or squamous cell carcinoma.
This is suggesting there might be something different going on with tumors in never-smokers. "If we find out lung cancer in never-smokers is a different disease and we can identify what those differences are, maybe we can design specific therapies that target the genetic alterations in never-smokers and improve the prognosis,"said Kelsie Thu, a doctoral candidate at the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver in november 2010.
Then the research is done to evaluate that. From the latest research, scientists compared the genetic characteristics of lung cancer in 30 people who never smoked to tumors in 53 smokers or former smokers. The tumors of people who had non-smokers had twice as many DNA abnormalities as people who were current or former smokers. People who never smoked are also more likely to have a mutation in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene. Never-smokers with lung cancer were also less likely to have the KRAS mutation, which has also been shown in prior research.
In smokers group, it's believed that the tobacco and cigarettes contains carcinogens that cause DNA mutations that lead to the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells when it exposed to someone.
While in nonsmokers, the added genetic mutations suggest other mechanisms are driving the tumor growth. Then it's hypothesized that there is more genomic instability in the non-smokers than the smokers who have lung cancer, and that leads us to believe there may be some other molecular mechanism that is driving the tumor development.
adopted from http://www.healthjockey.com/2008/04/03/id-gene-associated-to-lung-cancer-researchers
In never-smokers, the challenge is not only coming up with treatments that target the genetic mutations of their tumor, but in identifying people soon enough to help them, said Carbone, a member of the Lung Cancer Foundation of America's scientific advisory board. Nonsmokers tend to take longer to be diagnosed with lung cancer because few suspect they have it, he said. "We often see never-smokers present with advanced, incurable disease," he said.
Implications
Cancer knowledge is developed from time to time, thus impact in therapy and management of cancer. All of oncologist, scientist agree that cancer is best cured at early stage.
Today concept of Cancer Therapy is Individualized therapy, since the same cancer may have different genetic profiles, thus may give a different outcome if we treat with the same drugs.
As we seen in lung cancer, non-smokers tend to have adenocarcinoma type, and have EGFR mutation than smokers. Thus may have different outcome if we treat with same regiment with the smokers. EGFR targetted therapy has been developed, and is being used recently as therapy in advanced stage of lung cancer that have EGFR mutation. From the study, this therapy is promising in therapy of advanced stage of lung cancer.
adopted from http://www.abbottdiagnostics.com.au/
Take home message
Human knowledge about cancer is developed from time to time. Primary prevention of cancer is important to lower the incidence of cancer. Early detection of cancer is important to lower morbidity and achieve cure. Individualized therapy is a new method and become promising therapy in cancer.
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