Sameek Roychowdhury, Ph.D., M.D.

We now understand that lung cancer is not a single disease, but instead classified by different gene alterations or mutations that are either inherited or arise spontaneously. Despite dramatic advances, up to 50% of patients do not have gene alterations that can treated with targeted therapies, also known as "smart drugs." We will implement a precision cancer medicine study for patients with advanced lung cancer who do not have effective standard treatment options, and offer them an innovative testing strategy using customized targeted DNA and RNA sequencing to identify genetic mutations that can be attacked with existing targeted therapies.

Update: We have developed two testing strategies utilizing DNA and RNA sequencing to identify novel gene mutations in patients seen in our precision cancer medicine clinic. In Year 1 of the project, we have evaluated 38 patients and identified patients with mutations that led to treatment with novel therapies.