RET proteins are a type of receptor tyrosine kinase—an important group of signaling molecules in healthy cells. When RET proteins are turned “on” and “off” in healthy cells, they control the function of other proteins. This cascading effect allows the cells to manage important cellular functions such as cell growth through protein signaling pathways. When specific changes (such as mutations or fusions) occur in RET proteins, they can become hyperactive, disrupting many important functions in the cell including growth, proliferation, and cell death, that lead to the development of cancer

Historically, approaches to treating lung cancer included surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. The past decade ushered in a new era of treatments with targeted therapy and immunotherapy. Now, we are seeing the emergence of another class of lung cancer treatments called antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), that are a combination of targeted therapy and chemotherapy. ADCs act like a “smart chemotherapy” that aim to deliver the drug compound directly to cancer cells, reducing harm to healthy tissue. As part of LUNGevity’s International Lung Cancer Survivorship Conference last September, we hosted an

What Is Integrative Oncology? Integrative oncology is the use of complementary therapies alongside conventional lung cancer treatments like chemotherapy, targeted therapy, surgery, or immunotherapy. Integrative oncology—also called integrative medicine—is an evidence-informed whole-body approach to health. It is often used to address symptoms and side effects caused by disease or treatment and improve overall quality of life. Specific examples of integrative oncology for lung cancer include: Acupuncture or massages to address pain or nausea Exercise to reduce pain and improve overall quality

Surgery is a treatment option for early-stage lung cancer that involves removing all or part of a lung to treat a cancerous tumor. It is primarily an option for people with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) staged at I, II, or IIIA. Surgery is rarely considered for tumors at stage IIIB or IV because those lung cancers have spread to other parts of the body. It is also rarely used to treat small cell lung cancer (SCLC) because SCLC is typically diagnosed at a later stage. Types of Lung Cancer Surgery Once the medical team decides someone’s lung cancer is resectable (able to be removed by

The four-person panel, including John Heymach, MD, PhD, from MD Anderson Cancer Center, discuss the current FDA-approved targeted treatments for RET-positive lung cancer—selpercatinib (Retevmo) and pralsetinib (Gavreto). While these first-line treatments have proven helpful in treating RET-positive non-small cell lung cancer, the cancer cells can eventually become resistant to the treatment, which is guiding much of Dr. Heymach’s attention at the moment. Watch the full video to hear about: Dr. Heymach’s research on targeting resister cells How patients and advocacy groups can support research

Read time: 2 minutes. Here we present the final video in our three-part series about how patients and researchers can work together to develop clinical trials. In the video below, LUNGevity again partnered with Rising Tide for Clinical Cancer Research to illustrate the power of having patients contribute to the research process. We use a real-world example to learn about patient-researcher collaborations through the POSITIVE study, a breast cancer-focused clinical trial. You can watch the entire video, or use the timestamps below. Make sure to watch parts 1 and 2 of this series here: How Can

Read time: 2 minutes. We are pleased to continue our three-part series about how patients and researchers can work together to develop clinical trials. In this second video, LUNGevity again partnered with Rising Tide for Clinical Cancer Research to show how researchers and patient advocates can be empowered with tools to create clinical trials that resonate with patients and address the key issues they care about. If you missed the first video, How Can Patients and Researchers Design Clinical Trials Together, you can watch it here. Watch Part 2 below, or use the timestamps to skip to a

Read time: 3 minutes. Throughout 2024 we published blogs sharing scientific meeting recaps, educational content, personal stories, treatment news, and so much more. Below are the most popular articles we published in 2024. If you’re looking for survivor features and personal stories, you can see all the lung cancer survivors we highlighted in 2024 right here. 2024 ASCO: Highlights of Lung Cancer Research In June, we recapped the annual American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting. Thousands of oncologists, scientists, biotech and pharmaceutical representatives, patients, and advocates

Read time: 2 minutes. Brain metastases (also called brain mets) develop when cancer from somewhere else in the body spreads to the brain. Over time, tumors can become metastatic (travel to other parts of the body). When lung cancer travels to the brain, it requires specialized treatments that can cross the blood-brain barrier. The blood-brain barrier is a tight network of blood vessels and tissue that allows some substances, such as oxygen and water, into the brain while protecting it from potentially harmful substances—including some anticancer drugs. Often, different types of lung cancer

Lung cancer screening and early detection were major topics of discussion at the World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC), held in San Diego from September 7-10, and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) conference in Barcelona from September 13-17. This fourth and final blog in our series of updates summarizes highlights from these discussions. You can read the other update blogs from these fall science meetings: Metastatic NSCLC Highlights Small Cell Lung Cancer Highlights Early-Stage and Locally Advanced NSCLC Cancer screening involves tests that can detect early-stage cancer when