By creating high-resolution cellular and molecular visual maps of lung cancer before and during development, researchers discovered that the earliest stages of lung cancer may be driven by inflammation, suggesting that targeting proinflammatory pathways could be an early intervention approach. The study generated spatial transcriptomic maps in precancerous and more advanced stages of lung cancer to provide a deeper understanding of early lung cancer development. The research was led by Humam Kadara, Ph.D., professor of Translational Molecular Pathology, and Linghua Wang, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Genomic Medicine, associate member of the James P. Allison Institute™ and focus area co-lead with the Institute for Data Science in Oncology.
“We find that the earliest cells that give rise to lung cancer are in regions with very high inflammation and are surrounded by proinflammatory cells. Targeting inflammation by neutralizing a driver called IL-1B reduces these precursor cells of lung cancer,” Kadara said. “Our work paves the way for targeting inflammation to intercept the earliest stages of lung cancer and impact patient lives.”