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This article is sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company.
In this special sponsored episode from Eli Lilly and Company, I am joined by Dr. Lee James, senior vice president, oncology medical affairs at Lilly, to discuss the importance of lung cancer screenings, early diagnosis, and advancements in biomarker testing.
Dr. James has an extensive academic background and patient experience in lung cancer, which drives his enthusiasm for his work, as he noted, “I have been passionate about this space for 20 years.”
Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in both men and women and is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., responsible for approximately one in five cancer deaths.
Of the types of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for about 80 to 85 percent of all lung cancers and includes adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and large cell carcinoma.
“Understanding that basically anybody with lungs could potentially get lung cancer is an important reset. We have a lot of work to do to educate people about the prevalence of lung cancer and how it really can be a disease that affects anyone,” Dr. James says.
Screening and early diagnosis
To best improve patient outcomes, lung cancer screening and early detection are critical. Finding and treating lung cancer early, before it has spread, markedly increases a person’s chance of survival. Screening is associated with a 20 percent reduction in the risk of mortality from lung cancer, and one death is prevented for every 320 people who are screened for lung cancer.
Unfortunately, screening adoption rates for eligible patients in the U.S. remain low (18 percent). Eligible patients include those who are ages 50 to 80 years, have a 20 pack-year smoking history or currently smoke cigarettes or quit within the past 15 years. Among those eligible, cited barriers to low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening adoption may include limited awareness, inconvenience, medical distrust, stigma, and perceived financial burden.
A LDCT scan is a quick, non-invasive imaging procedure that uses significantly less radiation than a standard CT scan. These images are then processed by a computer to create a detailed view of your lungs.
“We find that only about 18 percent of eligible patients are actually getting lung cancer screening, as opposed to well over 50 or 60 percent for other tumors,” Dr. James says.
Increasing utilization of LDCT screening for NSCLC starts with closing knowledge gaps around eligibility of LDCT screenings and increasing awareness of screening as a treatment option. But early detection is only the first step in improving patient outcomes in NSCLC. Regardless of the stage at diagnosis, comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) is equally vital and equips patients and care teams with important information to inform treatment decisions.
“Step one is finding the cancer as early as possible. The next step is not stopping with the diagnosis until you know exactly what the molecular profile of that cancer is,” Dr. James says.
The importance of comprehensive genomic profiling
Cancer is a disease of the genome, and finding the appropriate treatment requires a full understanding of the genomic drivers of a person’s specific cancer, which can help provide information about selecting the most effective therapies while ruling out treatments that may be unlikely to help.
CGP is the most thorough type of biomarker testing that looks for alterations in the DNA of a patient’s tumor cells to better understand the genomic drivers of lung cancer and inform options for targeted treatments. This form of testing is used in the precision medicine approach, in which an individual’s unique cancer profile is considered in diagnosis and treatment.
“It is very important that if you really want to understand the full picture of somebody’s cancer, you understand the totality of it. That means comprehensive testing. It is one test, but it looks for many different things,” Dr. James says.
CGP in early-stage NSCLC allows for a better understanding of one’s cancer diagnosis and an opportunity to receive care that is tailored to an individual’s unique cancer profile earlier in the treatment journey. People with lung cancer who receive targeted therapy based on biomarker testing results have a higher five-year survival rate compared with those who receive non-targeted therapy.
“If you look at patients with a mutation discovered by comprehensive testing, get that diagnosis, and go on an appropriate treatment, their five-year survival could be over 80 percent,” Dr. James says.
Approximately 70 percent of people with NSCLC carry biomarkers that can inform treatment decisions, potentially opening doors to targeted therapies regardless of disease stage. This significant proportion underscores the critical role that pulmonologists, oncologists, and surgeons play in their patients’ care, specifically educating them about CGP and advocating for biomarker testing as a standard part of treatment planning. This science-driven approach offers patients more than just options; it offers perspective on potential treatment options.
“The message to patients is very clear: There is hope. A good part of that hope is based on the science being developed using their full genomic profile,” says Dr. James.
Lilly is committed to working with the lung cancer community to provide broader access to lung cancer screenings and genomic testing for patients.
Lee James is a hematology-oncology certified physician and senior vice president of global oncology medical affairs at Eli Lilly and Company.
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