الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for more than 85 % of all lung cancer cases, with the main histological subtype consisting of adenocarcinoma. In the last decade, the presence of novel therapeutics targeting signalling pathways activated by genetic alterations has revolutionized the way patients with NSCLC are treated. The anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene is found at 2 p 23, spans 29 exons, and encodes a 1,620 amino acid, 220 kDa classical insulin superfamily tyrosine kinase. ALK translocation positive lung tumors are often adenocarcinomas with a solid or acinar histology, and focal signet- ring cell features, that often occur in younger patients who are never or former / light smokers. Since the introduction of crizotinib based chemotherapy, ALK mutation testing is now recommended for all NSCLCs. There are several molecular ALK mutation testing methods; the most common are immunohistochemistry (IHC), fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), and polymerase chain reaction based techniques (PCR). FISH analysis is considered the gold standard for ALK NSCLC mutation testing. The advantages of FISH are that it should detect all ALK rearrangements regardless of the fusion partner and is accurate and reliable. This study aimed to determine the frequency of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene mutations by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in non small cell lung carcinoma patients. |