Molecular diagnosis allows us to characterise each patient individually. Finding a driver
mutation (which promotes tumour development), such as ALK, opens the door to
treatment for your specific cancer, called targeted therapy.
ALK-positive cancer most commonly occurs in the lung, but can also occur in other
parts of the body, such as the brain and breast. Around 90% of people are diagnosed
with ALK-positive cancer when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
ALK+ lung cancer has specific characteristics that make it different from other lung
tumours. Firstly, the prevalence is very low, at 3-5% of patients. It also tends to be
diagnosed at an early age, with half of cases diagnosed before the age of 50, and is
slightly more common in women. Finally, it has no relation to tobacco use.
The reason why the cells have this genetic mutation is not yet known. For this reason,
there is no way to prevent it.
However, treatments have been developed and the average survival rate has
increased more than six-fold in recent years, and is on the increase as new resistance
mechanisms are discovered and clinical trials offer new therapies and treatment
strategies.
