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Genetic insight and therapeutic targets in squamous-cell lung cancer

Oncogene volume 31, pages 4811–4814 (2012)Cite this article

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Abstract

Squamous-cell lung cancer is one of the most prevalent subtypes of lung cancer worldwide and its pathogenesis is closely linked with tobacco exposure. Unfortunately, squamous-cell lung cancer patients do not benefit from major advances in the development of targeted therapeutics such as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors or anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitors that show exquisite activity in lung adenocarcinomas with EGFR mutations or echinoderm microtubule associated protein like-4 (EML4)-ALK fusions, respectively. Major efforts have been launched to characterize the genomes of squamous-cell lung cancers. Among the new results emanating from these efforts are amplifications of the fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 gene and mutations of the discoidin domain receptor 2 gene as potential novel targets for the treatment of squamous-cell lung cancer patients. Here, we provide a review on these discoveries and their implications for clinical trials in squamous-cell lung cancer assessing the value of novel therapeutics addressing these targets.

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Acknowledgements

RKT is supported by the German Ministry of Science and Education (BMBF) as part of the NGFNplus program (grant 01GS08100), by the Max Planck Society (M.I.F.A.NEUR8061 to RKT), by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) through SFB (TP6), the Ministry for Innovation, Science, Research and Technology of the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen (MIWT, 4000- 12 09), by the Fritz-Thyssen-Stiftung (grant 10.08.2.175) and by an anonymous foundation. MLS is supported by an IASLC Lung Cancer Fellowship Award. RKT received consulting and lecture fees (Sanofi-Aventis, Merck, Roche, Boehringer Ingelheim, Astra-Zeneca, Atlas-Biolabs, Johnson&Johnson), as well as research support (AstraZeneca, Merck).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Institute for Neurological Research with Klaus-Joachim-Zülch Laboratories of the Max Planck Society and the Medical Faculty of the University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    M L Sos & R K Thomas

  2. Department I of Internal Medicine and Center of Integrated Oncology Köln – Bonn, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    M L Sos & R K Thomas

  3. Laboratory of Translational Cancer Genomics, Center of Integrated Oncology Köln – Bonn, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    R K Thomas

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Correspondence to R K Thomas.

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Sos, M., Thomas, R. Genetic insight and therapeutic targets in squamous-cell lung cancer. Oncogene 31, 4811–4814 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/onc.2011.640

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