The Pandora's box of novel technologies that may revolutionize lung cancer

Abstract

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most common cancers globally and has a 5-year survival rate ~20%. Immunotherapies have demonstrated long-term and durable responses in NSCLC patients, although they appear to be effective in only a subset of patients. A more comprehensive understanding of the underlying tumour biology may contribute to identifying those patients likely to achieve optimal outcomes. Profiling the tumour microenvironment (TME) has shown to be beneficial in addressing fundamental tumour-immune cell interactions. Advances in multiplexing immunohistochemistry and molecular barcoding has led to recent advances in profiling genes and proteins in NSCLC. Here, we review the recent advancements in spatial profiling technologies for the analysis of NSCLC tissue samples to gain new insights and therapeutic options for NSCLC. The combination of spatial transcriptomics combined with advanced imaging is likely to lead to deep insights into NSCLC tissue biology, which can be a powerful tool to predict likelihood of response to therapy.

Keywords: Lung cancer; Molecular barcoding; Multiplex immunohistochemistry; Spatial transcriptomics; Tumour microenvironment.