Read time: 4 minutes I just returned from the Cancer Grand Challenges Summit, held March 5–8, 2024 in London, England. Cancer Grand Challenges was launched in 2020 as a collaboration between Cancer Research UK and the National Cancer Institute in the US, whereby they provide $25 million to international, multi-institutional teams working to address some of the most perplexing issues in the cancer field. I am LUNGevity’s representative on Team CANCAN, which is working to understand and treat cancer cachexia, the extreme loss of muscle and fat tissue (often called “wasting”) that often occurs in

Read Time: 5 minutes It’s a mystery that has been baffling researchers: Why do some people develop lung cancer in their 20s or 30s? While we used to think lung cancer was only caused by exposure to tobacco and environmental factors like radon, researchers are starting to learn that the development of lung cancer, particularly in younger adults, could have a hereditary component. LUNGevity partnered with the Lung Cancer Initiative, a leading nonprofit in North Carolina, to support research into this space by awarding one of our 2023 Career Development Awards to Jaclyn LoPiccolo, PhD, MD

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new treatment option for people diagnosed with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have EGFR exon 19 deletions or exon 21 L858R mutations. Prior to this approval, treatment with osimertinib alone was the gold-standard targeted therapy for this population. The recent approval offers another option to patients – the combination of osimertinib with chemotherapy. This FDA approval is based on the results of the FLAURA 2 phase III clinical trial, which demonstrated that the addition of chemotherapy to

Approximately 10%-15% of patients with non-small cell lung cancer have tumors with mutations in the EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) gene. EGFR mutations are known to drive cancer growth. Many patients living with EGFR-positive lung cancer benefit from targeted therapies called tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). TKIs, such as osimertinib, can help patients by specifically blocking the effect of these mutations and reducing tumor growth. However, TKI-treated tumors eventually develop drug resistance, evade treatment, and resume growth. To help address this increasing problem of drug

LUNGevity Foundation is thrilled to announce the recipients of the EGFR Resisters/LUNGevity Research Award for EGFR-Positive Lung Cancer. EGFR Resisters, a vibrant patient-led community advocating for improved treatment options for patients with EGFR-positive lung cancer, has partnered with LUNGevity for the second time to support high-impact research focused on EGFR-positive lung cancer. “We are pleased to partner with LUNGevity again on patient-directed research to address the unmet needs of the EGFR-positive lung cancer community,” said Kristen Kimball, patient advocate with the EGFR

LUNGevity Foundation is proud to announce the recipients of four awards to bolster the lung cancer research workforce— the Career Development Award, the VA Research Scholar Award, the Health Equity and Inclusiveness Research Fellow Award, and the ASTRO-LUNGevity Residents/Fellows in Radiation Oncology Seed Grant. “Progress in lung cancer research is only possible with a vibrant and diverse thoracic oncology workforce,” notes Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, executive director, LUNGevity Research. “We have to maintain a pipeline of excellent researchers from a diverse range of backgrounds to create

The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) recently held its annual conference from October 20 – 24, 2023 in Madrid, Spain. ESMO represents one of the largest gatherings of the international oncology community, and this year’s meeting had over 30,000 registered attendees from around the world. Though October 19th brought record rainfall to Madrid, breaking a 100-year record, the rain in Spain didn’t dampen the palpable excitement of this year’s meeting. This was an especially exciting ESMO because there were a number of important lung cancer presentations that represent practice-changing

Lung cancer clinical trials are carefully designed research studies to evaluate and learn more about new drugs and treatments. They give people the ability to participate in lung cancer research and access to new treatments that otherwise may not be available to them, all under the close supervision of medical experts.

The International Lung Cancer Survivorship Conference (ILCSC) is a free virtual educational conference for people with lung cancer, caregivers, and advocates. The 2023 conference was held September 22-23. The recorded sessions from this conference are available to registered participants through December 21, 2023, at www.lungevity.org/ilcsc. If you did not register for the conference but would like to view the recordings, you may still register for free access. The recordings are available until December 21. The recordings provide opportunities for attendees to hear from world-renowned

I had the privilege of attending the 2023 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Singapore with my colleague Dr. Bellinda King-Kallimanis. WCLC, the world's largest meeting dedicated to lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies, is an excellent forum for learning about the latest research into the early detection and treatment of lung cancer. Apart from the science, it was inspiring to see fellow advocates and network with brilliant researchers, all razor-focused on improving the outcomes and lives of people diagnosed with lung cancer. Major highlights of the meeting are summarized below