Advances in Lung Cancer Basic and Translational Research in 2025 - Overview and Perspectives Focusing on NSCLC

Celine Mascaux¹, Triparna Sen², Montse Sanchez-Cespedes³, Sandra Ortiz-Cuaran⁴, Yohan Bossé⁵, Floris Dammeijer⁶, Milena Cavic⁷, Martin P Barr⁸, Surein Arulananda⁹, Ricardo Armisen¹⁰, Alice H Berger¹¹, Fabrizio Bianchi¹², David P Carbone¹³, Ferdinando Cerciello¹⁴, William W Lockwood¹⁵, Tetsuya Mitsudomi¹⁶, Shuta Ohara¹⁷, Katerina Politi¹⁸, Sida Qin¹⁹, Laila C Roisman²⁰, Robert Samstein²¹, Ferdinandos Skoulidis²², Aaron C Tan²³, Anish Thomas²⁴, Jianjun Zhang²², Murry W Wynes²⁵, Thomas John²⁶, Ming Sound Tsao²⁷; IASLC Basic and Translational Science Committee

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pulmonology, University Hospital of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France; Institut National De La Santé et De La Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR)_1260, Regenerative Nanomedicine (NanoRegMed), Strasbourg University, Strasbourg, France.
² Department of Oncological Sciences, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
³ Cancer Genetics Group, Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute (IJC), Badalona, Barcelona, Spain.
⁴ Univ Lyon, Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University, INSERM 1052, CNRS 5286, Centre Léon Bérard, Cancer Research Center of Lyon, Lyon, France.
⁵ Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec-Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada; Department of Molecular Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
⁶ Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
⁷ Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia.
⁸ Thoracic Oncology Research Group, School of Medicine, Trinity Translational Medicine Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, St James's Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
⁹ Department of Medical Oncology, Monash Health, Clayton, Australia.
¹⁰ Centro de Genética y Genómica, Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile.
¹¹ Human Biology Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, Washington.
¹² Unit of Cancer Biomarkers, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy.
¹³ Department of Medical Oncology, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, Ohio; Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology, Columbus, Ohio.
¹⁴ Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
¹⁵ Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Institute, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
¹⁶ Izumi City General Hospital, Izumi, Japan; Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University, Osaka, Japan.
¹⁷ Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University, Osaka, Japan.
¹⁸ Yale Cancer Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
¹⁹ Department of Thoracic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, People's Republic of China.
²⁰ Cancer Research Institute, Samson Assuta Hospital, Ashdod, Israel; Faculty of Health Sciences - Microbiology and Immunology, Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel.
²¹ Department of Radiation Oncology, Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
²² Department of Thoracic Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
²³ Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore.
²⁴ Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland.
²⁵ International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, Denver, Colorado.
²⁶ Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
²⁷ University Health Network-Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. Electronic address: ming.tsao@uhn.ca.

PMID: 40473107
PMCID: PMC12216557 (available on 2026-06-03)
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtho.2025.05.024

Review

Advances in Lung Cancer Basic and Translational Research in 2025 - Overview and Perspectives Focusing on NSCLC

Celine Mascaux et al. J Thorac Oncol. 2025 Oct.

. 2025 Oct;20(10):1369-1391.

doi: 10.1016/j.jtho.2025.05.024. Epub 2025 Jun 3.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pulmonology, University Hospital of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France; Institut National De La Santé et De La Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR)_1260, Regenerative Nanomedicine (NanoRegMed), Strasbourg University, Strasbourg, France.
² Department of Oncological Sciences, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
³ Cancer Genetics Group, Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute (IJC), Badalona, Barcelona, Spain.
⁴ Univ Lyon, Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University, INSERM 1052, CNRS 5286, Centre Léon Bérard, Cancer Research Center of Lyon, Lyon, France.
⁵ Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec-Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada; Department of Molecular Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
⁶ Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
⁷ Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia.
⁸ Thoracic Oncology Research Group, School of Medicine, Trinity Translational Medicine Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, St James's Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.
⁹ Department of Medical Oncology, Monash Health, Clayton, Australia.
¹⁰ Centro de Genética y Genómica, Facultad de Medicina Clínica Alemana Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile.
¹¹ Human Biology Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, Washington.
¹² Unit of Cancer Biomarkers, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy.
¹³ Department of Medical Oncology, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, Ohio; Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology, Columbus, Ohio.
¹⁴ Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
¹⁵ Department of Integrative Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Institute, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
¹⁶ Izumi City General Hospital, Izumi, Japan; Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University, Osaka, Japan.
¹⁷ Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kindai University, Osaka, Japan.
¹⁸ Yale Cancer Center, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
¹⁹ Department of Thoracic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, People's Republic of China.
²⁰ Cancer Research Institute, Samson Assuta Hospital, Ashdod, Israel; Faculty of Health Sciences - Microbiology and Immunology, Ben Gurion University, Beer Sheva, Israel.
²¹ Department of Radiation Oncology, Department of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
²² Department of Thoracic Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
²³ Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, Singapore.
²⁴ Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland.
²⁵ International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, Denver, Colorado.
²⁶ Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
²⁷ University Health Network-Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. Electronic address: ming.tsao@uhn.ca.

PMID: 40473107
PMCID: PMC12216557 (available on 2026-06-03)
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtho.2025.05.024

Abstract

Basic and translational research in lung cancer is a rapidly evolving field with a transformational impact on early detection, diagnosis, therapeutic development, and personalization of care. Recent advances have greatly increased our understanding of the molecular genomics, proteomics, pathogenesis, and cellular biology of this deadly malignancy. The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) recently formed a Basic and Translational Science (BaTS) Committee to further enhance the scientific leadership of IASLC in thoracic cancer research. This review by members of the committee highlights the breadth of current research in NSCLC, with a focus on molecular risk factors and processes in tumorigenesis, heterogeneity, phenotypic plasticity, metabolic reprogramming, immunobiology, the immune microenvironment, and microbiome. This review also identifies future research areas that may lead to further improvement in survival outcomes and curative therapies especially for patients with advanced NSCLC.

Keywords: Cancer metabolism; Early lung cancer; Genomics; Immune microenvironment; State of Science; Tumor heterogeneity.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure Dr. Arulananda reports receiving personal fees/support from MSD, Astra Zeneca, Roche, Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), Merck Serono, Takeda, and Amgen. Dr. Armisen reports receiving research grant and personal fees/support from Roche Diagnostics. Dr. Berger reports receiving research grant from Mitsubishi Pharma and personal fees/support from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Puma Biotechnology. Dr. Carbone reports receiving personal fees/support from Abbvie, Lilly, GSK, Iovance, Biotherapeutics, Arcus Biosciences, Roche, Regeneron, Genentech, Novocure, OncoHost, AstraZeneca (AZ), Amgen, Daiichi Sankyo, Lilly, Pfizer, Janssen/Johnson&Johnson (JNJ), BMS, Iovance, Merck KGaA, and Synthekine, Inc. Dr. Cavic reports receiving personal fees/support from Roche and AZ. Dr. Cerciello reports receiving personal fees/support from BMS, PharmaMar, and Takeda. Dr. Skoulidis reports receiving research grants from Amgen, Mirati Therapeutics/BMS, Revolution Medicines, Novartis, Merck & Co; and personal fees/support from Tango Therapeutics, Medscape LLC, Intellisphere LLC, RV Mais Promocao, Eventos LTDS, MJH Life Sciences, IDEOlogy Helath, MI&T, PER LLC, CURIO LLC, DAVA Oncology, AZ, Revolution Medicines, Novartis, Guardant Health, Novocure, Regeneron, BridgeBio, Beigene, BergenBio, BMS, Calithera Biosciences, Merck Sharp & Dome, Genentech/Roche, and GenMab. Dr. John reports receiving personal fees/support from BMS, AZ, Amgen, Roche, Pfizer, Takeda, Boehringer-Ingelheim, MSD, Merck, Puma, Specialised Therapeutics, Gilead, Seagen, JNJ, Bayer, and Beigene. Dr. Mascaux receiving personal fees/support from AZ, Roche, MSD, Sanofi, BMS, Regeneron, Pfizer, Takeda, Janssen, Amgen, and Daichii-Sankyo. Dr. Ortiz-Cuaran reports receiving personal fees/support from Pierre Fabre. Dr. Politi reports receiving grants from AZ, Roche/Genentech, D2G Oncology, Boehringer-Ingelheim, and Wojcicki Foundation; and personal fees/support from Revelio Therapeutics, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Janssen. Dr. Roisman reports receiving grants from ThermoFisher, and ISLAC VIKTOR Platform. Dr. Samstein reports receiving a grant from Merck. Dr. Sanchez-Cespedes reports receiving a grant from Merck KGA. Dr. Sen reports receiving grants from Jazz Pharmaceuticals, and Debiopharm; and personal fees/support from Regeneron and BMS. Dr. Tan reports receiving grants from AZ and Takeda; and personal fees/support from Amgen, Pfizer, Bayer, Roche, AZ, Guardant, Merck, and Takeda. Dr. Thomas reports receiving grants from EMD Serono, AZ, Immunomedics, Prolynx, Immunomedics, and Tarveda. Dr. Zhang reports receiving personal fees/support from JNJ, AZ, Novartis, BMS, GenePlus, Innovent, Oncohost, Hengrui, Catalyst, Merck, Summit, and Helius. Dr. Tsao reports receiving grants from AZ and Sanofi; and personal fees/support from Daichii-Sankyo, AZ, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Abbvie, Sanofi, and Diaceutics. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Advances in Lung Cancer Basic and Translational Research in 2025 - Overview and Perspectives Focusing on NSCLC

Affiliations

Advances in Lung Cancer Basic and Translational Research in 2025 - Overview and Perspectives Focusing on NSCLC

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

References

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Medical