Advice for Testing Practices in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
Anne Chiang, MD, associate professor, Medical Oncology, Yale School of Medicine, discusses key takeaways on a presentation around managing non–small cell lung cancer cases in patients with contralateral lung nodules and dominant tumors.
Anne Chiang, MD, associate professor, Medical Oncology, Yale School of Medicine, discusses key takeaways on a presentation around managing non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cases in patients with contralateral lung nodules and dominant tumors.
The most important step when beginning to care for a patients with these characteristics is to perform a liquid biopsy and a tissue biopsy when there is tissue available for both the nodules and dominant disease. The results of testing will provide information that will aid treatment choices. Testing should also be performed when patients progress, says Chiang. A second round of testing will be most relevant n patients who have a second tumor or a mixed tumor because the progression can be in one of the tumor’s clones and this would require a change in therapy.
Aside from what is already known about NSCLC's heterogenous nature, Chiang stresses the importance of staying abreast of clinical trial research as new treatment options may become available for patients in certain subgroup populations.
