The Utility of Next-Generation Sequencing in the Treatment Decision-Making for Metastatic Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer

Cureus. 2021 Aug 5;13(8):e16919. doi: 10.7759/cureus.16919. eCollection 2021 Aug.

Abstract

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) is a fast and relatively inexpensive method to sequence a large number of genes with crucial importance in cancer medicine. Nowadays, NGS is frequently used in diagnostic and therapeutic decisions in oncology; however, recently, it was demonstrated that only a few cancer sites actually benefit from this assessment. Moreover, the association of a mutant gene with a targeted drug is not always as predicted during in-vitro trials and is often not associated with tumor response. To predict the efficacy of such an association several classification systems have been developed. The present review aims to analyze the most important tumor agnostic treatment trials and assess how they shape selecting cancer patients for NGS. Moreover, it aims to determine how mutation-drug associations can be classified by their targetability and level of evidence of efficacy in non-small-cell lung cancer.

Keywords: cancer genomic profiling; next-generation sequencing; oncology; targeted therapy; tumor agnostic treatment.

Publication types

  • Review