Screening for anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene rearrangements in non-small-cell lung cancer in New Zealand.

Background: Lung cancer is a major cause of death in New Zealand. In recent years, targeted therapies have improved outcomes.

Aim: To determine the uptake of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) testing, and the prevalence, demographic profile and outcomes of ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), in New Zealand, where no national ALK-testing guidelines or subsidised ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapies are available.

Human Exposure to Radioactivity From Tobacco Smoke: Systematic Review.

Introduction: Tobacco has been known to contain radioactive polonium and lead for 50 years but the literature is divided as to the public health significance. I review the data on tobacco radioactivity and its internalization by smokers.

Methods: Data sources: Reports of lead-210 and polonium-210 content of tobacco leaf, cigarettes, cigarette smoke, and human respiratory tissues, published between 1964 and September 2017.

Lung cancer mutation testing: a clinical retesting study of agreement between a real-time PCR and a mass spectrometry test.

To investigate the clinical validity and utility of tests for detecting Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor () gene mutations in non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer patients, tumour DNA extracts from 532 patients previously tested by the cobas EGFR Mutation Test (RT-PCR test) were retested by the Sequenom/Agena Biosciences MassArray OncoFocus mass spectrometry test (MS test). Valid results from both tests were available from 470 patients (88%) for agreement analysis. Survival data were obtained for 513 patients (96%) and 77 patients (14%) were treated with EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).

Imaging vascular physiology to monitor cancer treatment.

The primary physiological function of the vasculature is to support perfusion, the nutritive flow of blood through the tissues. Vascular physiology can be studied non-invasively in human subjects using imaging methods such as positron emission tomography (PET), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), X-ray computed tomography (CT), and Doppler ultrasound (DU). We describe the physiological rationale for imaging vascular physiology with these methods.