Molecular Research in Lung Cancer
A special issue of Current Issues in Molecular Biology (ISSN 1467-3045). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Medicine".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 6327
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Despite accounting for only 15% of new cancer cases, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in men and women. Decades of research have contributed to our understanding that lung cancer is a multi-step process involving genetic and epigenetic modifications, where DNA damage results in the transformation of normal lung epithelial cells into lung cancer cells. It is unknown whether all lung epithelial cells or a subset of these cells (such as pulmonary epithelial stem cells or their immediate progenitors) can undergo complete malignant transformation. In addition, while the cell that initiated the tumour may have only a few mutations, as the tumour grows, more mutations may be acquired by other cells. Smoking harms the entire respiratory epithelium. As a result, field cancerisation or field defects such as molecular alterations are observed in histologically normal lung epithelium and in a variety of histologic preneoplastic/premalignant lesions, which also harbour molecular abnormalities common to the adjacent tumour. Lung cancers resulting from the accumulation of these changes exhibit all the hallmarks of cancer. Lung cancer is a clinically, physiologically, histologically, and molecularly diverse illness. Current research focuses on determining the molecular reasons for this heterogeneity, which may reflect changes occurring in separate classes of epithelial cells or distinct molecular alterations occurring in the same target lung epithelial cells. Significant concerns in basic and translational research include identifying the genes and pathways involved, defining how they relate to the biological activity of lung cancer, and determining their relevance as diagnostic and therapeutic targets.
The continued development of tailored treatments for lung cancer treatment relies on a deeper comprehension of the chemicals and pathways involved. Hundreds to thousands of candidate targets are being identified by cancer genome analysis, but all of them require molecular and clinical validation. Due to the nonlinear nature of the pathways involved in carcinogenesis, it is becoming increasingly evident that targeting a single molecule will not be sufficient. Instead, targeting several molecules simultaneously to tackle interconnected and intricate signalling pathways will increase efficacy. Recent next-generation sequencing studies reveal an effective mutation rate in the lung cancer genome, which likely contributes to the recognised heterogeneity of these tumours and explains the absence of effective conventional and targeted therapies with a universal effect in lung cancer. Understanding the molecular basis of lung cancer through the complete characterisation of aberrations in the cancer genome and their function would allow for the evaluation of their application in diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. Ultimately, the integration of clinical and biological aspects will improve lung cancer detection, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis by attaining personalised medicine and selecting the optimal treatment for each patient based on tumour-associated biomarkers.
This thematic Special Issue will focus on the most recent findings regarding the essential molecular processes in lung cancer aetiology, their timing in primary and metastatic disease, and their clinical implications.
Dr. Juliana Guarize
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- lung cancer
- diagnostic and therapeutic targets
- cancer genome
- biomarkers
- prognosis
