Testing approaches for RET alterations in non-small cell lung cancer

The landscape of biomarkers in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is quickly evolving, and testing for RET alterations is increasingly important as new therapies selectively target RET altered tumors. In this webcast, Jaclyn Hechtman, MD, Associate Attending Pathologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, will discuss the relevance of RET alterations in NSCLC and the pros and cons of different technical approaches to test for RET fusions and single-nucleotide variants (SNVs).

In addition, Dr. Hechtman will discuss the challenges that pathology labs currently face, with the growing numbers of biomarkers in guidelines for NSCLC, and limited tissue biopsy available for testing, and why a comprehensive genomic profiling approach is emerging to become standard of care.

You will learn:

• The basics around RET alterations in oncogenesis, incidence of RET alterations in NSCLC, and therapies that can selectively target RET altered tumors
• The different technical approaches that pathology labs can use to test for RET SNVs and fusions, with pros and cons for each one
• Why comprehensive genomic profiling is becoming standard of care for biomarker testing in NSCLC

Jaclyn Hechtman, MD
Associate Attending Pathologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Director of clinical biomarker development for the Early Drug Development service at MSKCC

Dr. Hechtman is a board-certified anatomic and molecular genetic pathologist, PI and co-investigator of many institutional projects and trials. Her clinical and research efforts include assay validation for kinase fusion detection, which have resulted in the clinical use of pan-Trk immunohistochemistry and assessment of microsatellite instability with next-generation sequencing.