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Dr. Seferos is developing new nanoparticle-based agents that are 13 nanometers in diameter to treat lung cancer. Unlike traditional chemotherapy, these particles can target the cancer cells directly and so reduce the side effects that are commonly associated with chemotherapy.

Lung cancer screening is not established as a public health practice, yet the results of a large randomized controlled trial among a high-risk population showed that screening with low-dose spiral computed tomography reduces lung cancer mortality. Milliman Consulting Company is conducting a cost-benefit analysis to demonstrate whether improved health outcomes (by catching the lung cancer early so that it can be treated) correlate with increased cost savings among this population.

The landscape of lung cancer treatment has changed with the initial discovery of an EGFR mutation in 2004. Now, drugs that block specific driver mutations are being considered for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The LOGIC group (Lung Oncology Group in Chicago) is studying the correlative effects of agents used in conjunction with targeted therapies in the treatment of lung cancer.

Dr. Borgia is working to develop new biomarkers to strengthen the capabilities of the existing blood test for identifying the presence of metastatic progress in non-small cell lung cancer that he has developed. He plans to adapt the blood test to a diagnostic card format so that high-risk individuals can put blood droplets on diagnostic cards at home and mail them to a test facility where the blood will be extracted and tested for the biomarkers in the panel.

Dr. Borgia has developed a blood test for identifying the presence of metastatic progression in non-small cell lung cancer. His current project allows for revision of the test to improve its accuracy and potentially reach an accuracy rate that will allow it to be useful as a stand-alone staging test.

Dr. Chandel is working to identify novel pathways underlying KRAS-driven lung cancer. He is testing two pathways, to determine how mitochondria (powerhouses of the cell) and Notch signaling (a pathway often activated in lung cancer that relays information from outside the cell to inside) behave differently in cancer and non-cancer cells.

The key proteins driving the growth of new blood vessels in tumors are the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its main receptors. Dr. Innocenti is studying how the level of these factors varies in the tumors of non-small cell lung cancer patients. He is also determining whether there is a genetic basis for the difference in their levels and what the role of these proteins in helping patients live longer is.

KCNK9 potassium channel activity is involved in the development of cancer, including lung cancers. Dr. Shikano is studying how this activity is regulated. An understanding of this process may lead to the development of a treatment that targets the channel activity.

Dr. Borgia is developing a process based on biomarkers derived from tissue and clinical factors such as age, smoking history, histology, and stage of diagnosis of lung cancer. This process will identify which patients with advanced-stage lung cancer will respond to medical treatment and thus qualify for surgery that potentially could cure the cancer.

Not every nodule detected on a CT scan is malignant. However, an invasive biopsy is often needed to determine this. Dr. Jeffrey Borgia’s team has discovered that malignant and benign nodules produce different types of proteins in the blood. Based on this finding, they are developing a simple blood test to predict which nodules require follow-up.