Molecular and Radiographic Biomarkers of Lung Cancer in Never-Smokers

By: Jenna Carter, PhD
Posted: Monday, April 29, 2024

Variations in gene expression in the nasal and bronchial epithelium along with chest CT features are often used to detect the presence of lung cancer in current and former smokers; however, their use as diagnostic biomarkers in never-smokers is not well characterized. In a study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024 (Abstract 877/21), researchers compared lung cancer–associated gene expression and radiomic features in patients who identified as never-smokers or ever-smokers. Marc E. Lenburg, PhD, of the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, and colleagues reported that the genes changed in ever-smoker patients with lung cancer were significantly enriched among the genes most associated with lung cancer in never-smokers.

Nasal epithelial samples from a total of 73 patients were employed in this study. Patient samples were collected and isolated at the University of California, Los Angeles, and RNA sequencing was performed. A software package was then used to identify genes with lung cancer–associated expression in never-smokers. This was done by comparing gene-expression data in 13 patients with benign nodules with 14 patients diagnosed with lung cancer. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was then used to compare similarities between cancer-associated genes in never-smokers and those previously identified in ever-smokers. Radiomic features were then extracted, and a binomial model was used to identify features with a significant interaction effect between cancer and smoking status.

Overall findings revealed a total of “74 genes decreased and 84 genes increased in cancer in never-smokers” (P < .005), with results controlled for age and median tumor-infiltrating neutrophils. Genes changed in ever-smoker patients with lung cancer were significantly enriched among the genes most associated with lung cancer in never-smokers. Four radiomic features were found to be associated with the perinodular term for cancer and smoking status, including two nodular and two boundary features.

Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit www.abstractsonline.com.

AACR Annual Meeting 2024

---