PER Conference Features Expert Views on Lung Cancer Advances

Roman Perez-Soler, MD

Lung cancer experts provided insights into recent developments in the treatment of the disease, covering topics ranging from resistance to targeted therapies to immunotherapy agents under study, during the 9th Annual New York Lung Cancer Symposium in New York City. Physicians’ Education Resource (PER), hosted the one-day meeting.

Roman Perez-Soler, MD, one of the program chairs of the symposium, said the meeting summarizes data presented earlier this year at larger conferences such the ASCO Annual Meeting and the ESMO 2014 Congress in order to keep community oncologists up to date with the ever-changing field of lung cancer treatment.

“We’re talking about new drugs, new targets, new molecular interventions….We’re talking about personalized medicine and the treatment of lung cancer,” said Perez-Soler, chairman of the Department of Oncology and chief of the Division of Medical Oncology at Montefiore Medical Center in Bronx, New York.

Mark Kris, MD

Perez-Soler said the conference attracts physicians throughout the region who are in private practice and oncology fellows from New York institutions who are interested in gaining insight into the latest developments in lung cancer.

Mark G. Kris, MD, who also co-chairs the meeting, said it is an extraordinary time in the treatment of lung cancer. Now that researchers better understand the molecular drivers of the disease, new drugs that make a difference in people’s lives are starting to be introduced into practice, he said.

“This conference is all about highlighting those developments that have happened in the last year and have had the greatest impact for patients. The meeting will help doctors find ways to make sure that those new developments get quickly translated to care for the people that they take care of,” said Kris, who is the William and Joy Ruane Chair in Thoracic Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

The symposium featured these presentations:

• How I Manage Acquired Resistance to EGFR TKIs
• Managing Oligoprogression During Therapy with EGFR or ALK TKIs
• How New Molecular Diagnostic Platforms Will Change Diagnosis and Treatment of Lung Cancers
• New Opportunities for Antiangiogenic Agents in Lung Cancers
• Incorporation of Immunotherapy in Lung Cancers: How Far Have We Come in 2014?
• What Are My Options When Squamous-Cell Lung Cancers Are the Target?
• Moving Forward With Small-Cell Lung Cancers
• The Changing Landscape of Therapy for Patients with ALK-Positive Lung Cancers
• Neoadjuvant vs Adjuvant Therapy for Patients with Lung Cancers
• What Are the Roles of Chemotherapy in the Molecular Age?

In addition, debates about the role that EGFR TKIs should have in the adjuvant setting and whether there is an optimal approach for EGFR-mutant lung cancers were explored. Additionally, experts at the meeting hosted case discussions to tackle some of the most challenging cases in lung cancer with participation from attendees.

Faculty members presenting at the meeting included Abraham Chachoua, MD, of NYU Langone Medical Center, Peter Hammerman, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, of Yale Cancer Center, and Benjamin P. Levy, MD, of Mount Sinai Health System.

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