Impact of ALK Inhibitors in Patients With ALK-Rearranged Nonlung Solid Tumors

We identified seven patients (inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors, n = 3; ALK-positive histiocytosis, n = 1; histiocytic sarcoma, n = 1; osteosarcoma, n = 1; and parotid adenocarcinoma, n = 1), with a median age of 17 years. Two rare ALK fusions, namely, CTNNA1-ALK and ITSN2-ALK, were identified. As initial ALK-TKI therapy, five patients received alectinib and two received crizotinib. The objective response rate for the initial ALK-TKI therapy was 85.7% (95% CI, 44 to 97), including two patients who received alectinib and achieved complete response. The median progression-free survival was 8.1 months (range, 1.7 to not estimable). There were no treatment interruptions or dose reductions because of adverse events caused by alectinib. This study highlights the potential benefit of ALK-TKIs, especially alectinib, in patients with ALK-rearranged nonlung solid tumors. READ ARTICLE

Journal of Thoracic Oncology DOI: 10.1200/PO.20.00383 JCO

Authors: Yuki Takeyasu, Hitomi S. Okuma, Yuki Kojima, Tadaaki Nishikawa, Maki Tanioka, Kazuki Sudo, Tatsunori Shimoi, Emi Noguchi, Ayumu Arakawa, Taisuke Mori, Kuniko Sunami, Takashi Kubo, Takashi Kohno, Yoshida Akihiko, Noboru Yamamoto and Kan Yonemori

Real-World OutcomesKirk SmithMay 7, 2021rare ALK fusions, not lung, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors (IMT)

Emerging Lab-on-a-Chip Approaches for Liquid Biopsy in Lung Cancer: Status in CTCs and ctDNA Research and Clinical Validation

Lung cancer (LCa) remains the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide,
with late diagnosis and limited therapeutic approaches still constraining patient’s outcome. In recent years,
liquid biopsies have significantly improved the disease characterization and brought new insights into
LCa diagnosis and management. The integration of microfluidic devices in liquid biopsies have shown
promising results regarding circulating biomarkers isolation and analysis and these tools are expected to
establish automatized and standardized results for liquid biopsies in the near future. Herein, we review the
status of lab-on-a-chip approaches for liquid biopsies in LCa and highlight their current applications for
circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) research and clinical validation studies. READ ARTICLE

Cancers DOI:10.3390/cancers13092101

Authors: Carvalho, Â., Ferreira, G., Seixas, D., Guimarães-Teixeira, C., Henrique, R., Monteiro, F.J., Jerónimo, C.

Review PaperKirk SmithApril 27, 2021inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors, IMT, rare ALK fusions