LUNGevity Foundation is proud to announce the recipients of four awards to bolster the lung cancer research workforce— the Career Development Award, the VA Research Scholar Award, the Health Equity and Inclusiveness Research Fellow Award, and the ASTRO-LUNGevity Residents/Fellows in Radiation Oncology Seed Grant.“Progress in lung cancer research is only possible with a vibrant and diverse thoracic oncology workforce,” notes Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, executive director, LUNGevity Research. “We…

The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) recently held its annual conference from October 20 – 24, 2023 in Madrid, Spain. ESMO represents one of the largest gatherings of the international oncology community, and this year’s meeting had over 30,000 registered attendees from around the world.  Though October 19th brought record rainfall to Madrid, breaking a 100-year record, the rain in Spain didn’t dampen the palpable excitement of this year’s meeting. This was an especially exciting…

Different types of lung cancer are known to be caused, or driven, by alterations in genes such as EGFR or ALK. One such alteration, the fusion of the ALK gene with another gene (usually EML4), occurs in approximately 5% of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Over the past several years, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have been approved to treat advanced ALK-positive lung cancers and may have fewer side effects with improved quality of life for patients. However, as with most…

Lung cancer clinical trials are carefully designed research studies to evaluate and learn more about new drugs and treatments. They give people the ability to participate in lung cancer research and access to new treatments that otherwise may not be available to them, all under the close supervision of medical experts. 

The International Lung Cancer Survivorship Conference (ILCSC) is a free virtual educational conference for people with lung cancer, caregivers, and advocates. The 2023 conference was held September 22-23.  The recorded sessions from this conference are available to registered participants through December 21, 2023, at www.lungevity.org/ilcsc. If you did not register for the conference but would like to view the recordings, you may still register for free access. The recordings are available…

I had the privilege of attending the 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Singapore with my colleague Dr. Bellinda King-Kallimanis. WCLC, the world's largest meeting dedicated to lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies, is an excellent forum for learning about the latest research into the early detection and treatment of lung cancer. Apart from the science, it was inspiring to see fellow advocates and network with brilliant researchers, all razor-focused on improving the outcomes…

While participating in clinical trials can provide substantial benefits to people with lung cancer, the resources required to do so may pose significant hurdles, especially to those who don’t live close to where trials are held, such as academic medical centers or major oncology network sites. Decentralized clinical trials remove some hurdles to trial participation for patients and are thus important for improving trial access for larger and more diverse groups of people. The U.S. Food and Drug…

Recently, members of LUNGevity Foundation joined thousands of attendees from the US and around the world, including oncologists, scientists, biotech and pharmaceutical representatives, advocates, and patients, to discuss lifesaving cancer research at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago from June 2 through June 6, 2023. The theme for this year’s conference, “Partnering With Patients: The Cornerstone of Cancer Care and Research,” was in recognition of…

As Chief Investigator of the groundbreaking Cancer Research UK (CRUK) TRACERx study, you could say that Dr. Charles Swanton is having a moment. Launched nine years ago, TRACERx seeks to understand lung cancer at its most basic level, “tracing” the clues that may predict how it starts and eventually changes over time so that doctors can treat it better.Collecting comprehensive genomic and clinical data from over 800 people with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), Dr. Swanton and a team of over…

Cancer Grand Challenges is a partnership between Cancer Research UK (CRUK) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which funds global teams of leading researchers across various scientific disciplines to tackle some of the toughest challenges in cancer research. As Dinah Singer, Acting Director of NCI’s Center for Strategic Scientific Initiatives says, “Cancer research is a global endeavor.” As LUNGevity’s Vice President of Global Engagement and Patient Partnerships, I recently attended the…

The development of new treatments for any disease relies on the collaborative efforts of many different stakeholders, such as scientists, clinicians, patient advocacy groups, regulators, and pharmaceutical and biotech companies. During scientific conferences that happen throughout the year, stakeholders cobble together opportunities to discuss the current state of treatments and strategize ways to bring emerging lifesaving treatments to patients. Each year, there is one key conference…

Targeted therapies, or treatments directed towards specific biomarkers in tumor cells, have been effective in treating many patients with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Tumors that have the ALK protein fused with another cancer-driving protein, such as the EML4 protein, are often referred to as ALK-positive tumors. Approximately 5% of advanced-stage adenocarcinoma, a type of NSCLC, will test positive for an ALK-fusion biomarker. Treating patients with ALK-positive lung…

Take a behind-the-scenes look at how researchers study lung cancer. Join lung cancer researcher Triparna Sen, PhD, as she digs into what’s known about how EGFR-positive NSCLC cells transform into SCLC to escape targeted therapy treatment. SCLC transformation is a common resistance mechanism for multiple types of NSCLC, including EGFR, ALK, and RET. This Facebook Live event is hosted by Amy Moore, PhD, LUNGevity’s Vice President of Global Engagements and Patient Partnerships. Dr. Sen is Co-…

Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, LUNGevity's Executive Director of Research, speaks with Charles Rudin, MD, PhD, about the key findings from the recent meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and what they mean for the lung cancer community.

LUNGevity’s Dr. Upal Basu Roy and Dr. Amy Moore will be live-tweeting from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting. Follow LUNGevity on Twitter and the hashtags #ASCO22 and #LCSM to be a part of the action. Times and topics of live-tweeted sessions are as follows: Fri, Jun 3, 2022 | 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM EDT | Lung Cancer—Non-Small Cell Metastatic  Sun, Jun 5, 2022 | 9:00 AM – 10:15 AM EDT | Treatment Sequencing in Resectable Lung Cancer…

Drs. Upal Basu Roy, Amy Moore, and Dhru Deb discuss their recent publication in which they presented an analysis of the lung cancer drug pipeline. They talk about what it means for patients, new drugs under development for NSCLC and SCLC, and some of the ongoing challenges and opportunities this rapid growth means for the lung cancer community.

Historically, surgery has been the most effective treatment for patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). While technological improvements, such as the development of minimally invasive techniques (such as video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery or VATS), have made surgeries safer for patients, the ability to cure early-stage NSCLC patients hasn’t improved significantly in recent decades. Even after successful surgeries that completely remove the visible tumor, about half of…

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 2022 meeting was held in New Orleans from April 9 to 13. Doctors and researchers worldwide joined together virtually and in person to make this year’s meeting one of the largest gatherings since the start of the pandemic. They shared the many exciting developments in cancer research and treatment that emerged over the last year. This year’s meeting is another testament to “Science doesn’t stop, and scientists never sleep!” Here, we discuss…