Recent research has found that lung cancer patients that carry a rare gene mutation may have extended survival rates when they take a drug typically specified for breast cancer. Medications that target human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, HER2, proteins delay the progression of the specific lung cancer. These proteins targeted by the drugs only are the results of 5 percent of lung cancers, therefore this method can not be used widely. However, if more every lung cancer patient is tested for the HER2 protein, it increases the possibility that doctors are able to detect this interaction and elongate survival.
Any progress in the cancer business is essential to the future treatments of different cancers. It is apparent that if more patients are testing for these proteins created in a gene mutation, the chances of survival are increased. I truly wish that this testing becomes more popular and more patients are offered the chance of slower progression and longer survival.
For more information on the following article visit:
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/news/articles/2013/04/22/testing-lung-cancer-patients-for-gene-may-aid-treatment-study-finds or
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/803000
This is a very interesting study in that it involves personalized cancer treatments based on one type of mutation be able to be treated better with a certain type of drug. Any time you can add on to the survival rate of any type of cancer, the treatment should be looked as as possible for all patients. I definitely feel that every patient with lung cancer should get tested for this mutation. I also wonder what specifically the HER2 genes do in relation to the cancer,as well as what pathway is involved in the mutations.
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