Recent progress in carcinogenesis, progression and therapy of lung cancer: the 19th Hiroshima Cancer Seminar: the 3rd Three Universities' Consortium International Symposium, November 2009

Our plain-English summary of Recent progress in carcinogenesis, progression and therapy of lung cancer: the 19th Hiroshima Cancer Seminar: the 3rd Three Universities' Consortium International Symposium, November 2009, by E. Tahara, W. Yasui, H. Ito, et al (Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology, 2010).

The study

• Authors: E. Tahara, W. Yasui, H. Ito, C.C. Harris
• Journal: Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology
• Published: 2010;40(7):702-8
• Cited by: 14 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

This symposium presented recent progress of the pathogenesis and treatment of lung cancer. Aberrantly increased expression of miR-21 plays a significant role in lung carcinogenesis and is a potential therapeutic target in both epidermal growth factor receptor-mutant and wild-type cases. miR-34 may be necessary for the radiation-induced DNA damage response. Detailed expression profiling analyses of transcriptome have potential to provide increased understanding of the molecular biology of lung cancer. An embryonic signature is present in lung adenocarcinoma only, associated with a worse clinical outcome. Cytoplasmic expression of caveolin and membranous expression of CD26 are specific to mesothelioma. Nectin-4 is a new candidate for serum and tissue biomarker as well as a therapeutic target for lung cancer. Clinical presentations have provided us a great deal information on epidermal growth factor receptor mutations for personalized therapy, combination therapy with inhibitors of the tyrosine kinase activity of epidermal growth factor receptor and cytotoxic agents, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity activity, and current management of lung cancer depending on both the extent of the disease and the treatment approach.

In plain English

This article was a meeting report, not an original study. It summarized the 19th Hiroshima Cancer Seminar, held on 1 November 2009 in Hiroshima, Japan, with 10 special lectures, 22 poster papers and about 120 attendees. Most lectures covered lung cancer biology and treatment, including microRNAs, gene expression profiles and drugs targeting the EGFR receptor or its tyrosine kinase activity. One lecture, by Kouki Inai, covered mesothelioma in Japan. According to the report, cases rose after mesothelioma from non-occupational or environmental asbestos exposure was reported in 2005, and the total passed 1000 in 2007. This was linked to rising asbestos imports from the 1960s to the 1990s and an estimated 30 to 40 year latent period. Inai re-examined mesothelioma death cases from 2003 to 2005 and judged the diagnosis unlikely or definitely not mesothelioma in 17% of cases. More than 10% of applications under compensation or relief systems were excluded for misdiagnosis. The lecture recommended immunohistochemistry with two positive and two negative markers chosen according to histological subtype. No asbestos fiber types or doses were given.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: meeting report summarizing lectures and posters at a symposium (not an original study)
• Who was studied: The 19th Hiroshima Cancer Seminar international symposium, held 1 November 2009 at International Conference Center Hiroshima, Japan: 10 special lectures and 22 poster papers, about 120 attendees
• Exposure: Mainly lung cancer biology and treatment. Asbestos appeared only in one lecture on mesothelioma in Japan, which referred to non-occupational or environmental exposure to asbestos. No fiber types, products or doses were given.
• Main results:
  • In the mesothelioma lecture (Kouki Inai), the report stated that mesothelioma incidence in Japan increased rapidly after the 2005 reports of environmental cases, and the total number exceeded 1000 in 2007.
  • The lecture explained the rise by asbestos imports increasing from the 1960s to the 1990s and an estimated latent period of 30 to 40 years between first asbestos exposure and mesothelioma diagnosis.
  • In Inai's re-examination of mesothelioma death cases from 2003 to 2005, the diagnosis was judged unlikely or definitely not mesothelioma in 17% of cases. The number of cases was not given.
  • Under the compensation or relief system, more than 10% of applied cases were reported to have been excluded because of misdiagnosis.
  • For pathological diagnosis of mesothelioma, the lecture recommended immunohistochemistry using two positive and two negative markers chosen according to histological subtype (different markers were listed for epithelioid and sarcomatoid mesothelioma).
  • Inai reported that cytoplasmic expression of caveolin and membranous expression of CD26 are specific to mesothelioma. A humanized CD26 antibody was being applied to mesothelioma patients in a Phase II trial.
  • In a lung cancer lecture (Yataro Daigo), serum Nectin-4 was positive in 88 of 164 (53.7%) non-small cell lung cancers, compared with 3 of 131 (2.3%) healthy volunteers falsely diagnosed as positive.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors described the symposium as presenting recent progress on the pathogenesis and treatment of lung cancer. They gave no overall conclusion about asbestos.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Lung cancer.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Carcinogenesis, Lung Cancer, Lung Adenocarcinoma, Mesothelioma, Biomarker.

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