Study ‘deep dive into lung cancer biology’

Lung cancer in non-smokers is a biologically distinct disease from that in smokers, research suggests.

Scientists at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London say that many patients who had the disease but did not smoke showed signs of DNA damage from cancer-causing substances that are present in the environment, such as vehicle exhaust fumes.

These genetic changes were found to vary depending on a patient’s age or sex.

The researchers believe that the findings, published in the journal Cell, could pave the way for tailored treatments based on newly identified genetic changes.

ICR chief executive Professor Paul Workman said: “This new study offers a deep dive into the biology of lung cancer in people who have never smoked.

“It reveals new ways of telling apart patients with different tumour characteristics that could be exploited with tailored treatment strategies.”

Most recent figures indicate that around 6,000 people who have never smoked die of lung cancer in the UK every year, which accounts for nearly a sixth of the total deaths from the disease.

The researchers say the proportion of lung cancers that occur in non-smokers is much higher in East Asian countries such as Taiwan, especially among women.

So, in a new study, a team of scientists at the ICR worked alongside colleagues in East Asia to analyse tumour samples from 103 patients in Taiwan who had the disease and did not smoke.

Study author Dr Jyoti Choudhary, of the ICR in London, said: “We discovered their disease is molecularly diverse and distinct from what we see in smokers.

“We found distinct patterns of genetic faults in non-smokers and between women and men, which suggest a woman who has never smoked, for example, is likely to respond differently to treatment than a male smoker.”