ESMO E-Learning: Rare Oncogenic Alterations in NSCLC

In this E-Learning module, a world-renowned researcher in personalised treatments for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) describes the frequency of targetable oncogenic driver molecular alterations, features rare oncogenic alterations, puts into clinical context targeting of BRAF, MET, HER2, ROS1, RET, NTRK, NRG1, and KRAS, and profoundly dissects the precision oncology landscape in patients with advanced NSCLC.

For each of the rare oncogenic alterations elaborated in this module, the author goes into detail about the pathway, targeted drugs available, the results from the clinical trials in terms of treatment outcomes and safety profile, the current place in the clinical practice guidelines and also tackles resistance.

In addition to describing the frequency of these molecular alterations, the author also describes the specificities in clinical presentation, provides the results from targeted therapies in clinical use, elaborates post-treatment resistance and provides an overview of ongoing clinical trials.

This module is an excellent example of recent achievements in precision oncology and illustrates the rapid transformation of a big cancer killer into many oncogene-driven subtypes.

In terms of diagnostic work-up, the author emphasizes the importance of a multidisciplinary discussion to determine optimal tissue procedure, biopsy, morphology, and the review of patients and tumour data. In terms of molecular profiling, the author highlights the role of integrated next-generation sequencing-based assay to detect mutations, amplifications and translocations. Furthermore, the author underlines patient selection and suitability for a plethora of recently developed targeted treatments