Dr. Nathan Pennell, Cleveland Clinic, evaluates chemotherapy sensitivity assays, describing the difficulties inherent in predicting response to chemotherapy agents.

Dr. Edward Garon, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, describes the exciting developments with LDK-378 and potentially other second generation ALK inhibitors for crizotinib-resistant ALK-positive advanced NSCLC.

[powerpress]

Dr. Edward Garon, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, covers the results and implications of the MADeIT phase III randomized study of predictive biomarkers ERCC1 and RRM1 in advanced NSCLC.

[powerpress]

Drs. Nate Pennell, Mary Pinder, and Jack West discuss trials presented at ASCO 2013 testing the potential value of molecular marker testing to select optimal chemo for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

[powerpress]

It's been a few months since I sat down with my friend, Dr. Nasser Hanna, a great lung cancer expert from Indiana University, and also a friend in the field. Those of you who have been following GRACE content for a while may have come across his name: he's led a few of the more important trials that are part of our current core knowledge in lung cancer now, such as the

We know that many people interested in the topics we discuss in our webinars may not be able to attend the live programs, but we're committed to offering our content to people as easily as possible. Accordingly, here is the podcast version of Dr. Pennell's very well received presentation on a range of molecular markers currently being used and others emerging in clinical trials as potential tools for the coming years.

Below you'll find the audio versions of the presentation.

I'm fortunate to practice at Moffitt, where Dr. Gerold Bepler and Dr. George Simon pioneered a molecularly directed approach to front-line chemotherapy in NSCLC. Data from the phase II clinical trial demonstrated impressive median survival for a platinum-based doublet: 13.3 months. The schema of the MADeIT clinical trial is shown below and I'm happy to say that I am able to put many of my patients on this clinical trial. Dr.

Dr. George Simon, medical oncologist and Director of the Thoracic Oncology Program at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, has been kind enough to sit down for an interview with me earlier this year, which was made into a podcast several months ago.

“Are we theeeeere yet?” Every parent knows that familiar whining from the back seat of the car. Sometimes, I feel as impatient as the kid in the back of the car. Although EGFR mutation helps with predicting tarceva (erlotinib) response, I want markers for cytotoxic (traditional) chemotherapy now. Unlike the parent in the driver’s seat of the car, I’m not entirely sure where we are, or where we’re going. Sometimes I feel as though I’m driving in the dark. Could molecular markers be the headlights?

In 2007 there was much excitement about the publication of a study by the researchers behind the landmark IALT adjuvant chemotherapy trial, which suggested that patients with early stage NSCLC could be divided into those who benefited greatly from cisplatin-based adjuvant chemotherapy and those who did not.