Pasi A. Jänne, MD, PhD

As part of our coverage of the AACR Annual Meeting, we discuss combination therapies and new research in the treatment of lung cancer.

Recent studies have shed new light on the role of histology in predicting sensitivity to therapeutic agents such as pemetrexed (Alimta) or bevacizumab (Avastin). Whereas during the past 30 years, the only useful histologic consideration was the absence or presence of a “non” before “small-cell lung cancer,” two US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs now have histologic restrictions.