Genomic Characterization of Lung Cancer and Its Impact on the Use and Timing of PET in Therapeutic Response Assessment

The Mechanism of Nemo-Like Kinase (NLK) in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) Cells by Regulating Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF)

Nemo-like kinase (NLK) is abnormally expressed in several tumors, but its role in NSCLC have not been reported. Real time PCR and Western blot were used to assess NLK level in tumor tissues and adjacent tissues of NSCLC. NSCLC cell line A549 cells were divided into three groups; NC group and si-NLK group which was transfected with NLK negative control or NLK siRNA respectively followed by analysis of NLK expression by real time PCR and Western blot, cell proliferation by MTT assay, cell migration by cell wound healing assay, cell invasion by transwell chamber and MMP-9 and VEGF expression by Western blot. The expression of NLK in NSCLC tumor tissue was increased, and the difference was statistically significant compared with adjacent tissues (P <0.05), and it was related to tumor size, degree of differentiation, metastasis and survival time (P <0.05). A549 cells showed significantly increased NLK. Transfection of NLK siRNA could significantly inhibit tumor cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and decrease the expression of MMP-9 and VEGF proteins (P <0.05). Elevated NLK level in NSCLC tumor tissues is related to clinicopathological characteristics. Decreased the expression of NLK can inhibit VEGF and MMP-9 expression, and inhibit cell function.

The value of the Standardized Uptake Value (SUV) and Metabolic Tumor Volume (MTV) in lung cancer

The diagnosis, staging and therapeutic monitoring of lung cancer were amongst the first applications for which the utility of FDG PET was documented and FDG PET/CT is now a routine diagnostic tool for clinical decision-making. As well as having high sensitivity for detection of disease sites, which provides critical information about stage, the intensity of uptake provides deeper biological characterization, while the burden of disease also has potential clinical significance. These disease characteristics can easily be quantified on delayed whole-body imaging as the maximum standardized uptake value (SUV_max) and metabolic tumor volume (MTV), respectively. There have been significant efforts to harmonize the measurement of these features, particularly within the context of clinical trials. Nevertheless, however calculated, in general, a high SUV_max and large MTV have been shown to have an adverse prognostic significance. Nevertheless, the use of these parameters in the interpretation and reporting of clinical scans remains inconsistent and somewhat controversial. This review details the current status of semi-quantitative FDG PET/CT in the evaluation of lung cancer.