Actionable Driver Events in Small Cell Lung Cancer

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 25; no. 1; p. 105
• Main Authors: Gutiérrez, Mirian, Zamora, Irene, Freeman, Michael R, Encío, Ignacio J, Rotinen, Mirja
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 20.12.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Auranofin; Cancer; Cancer therapies; Chemotherapy; Clinical trials; clinical vulnerability; Development and progression; Growth factors; Health aspects; heterogeneity; Humans; Immune system; Immunotherapy; inhibitor molecules; Kinases; Lung cancer; Lung cancer, Small cell; Lung Neoplasms - drug therapy; Medical prognosis; Metabolism; Metastasis; Morphology; Mutation; Prognosis; Proteins; Review; small cell lung cancer; Small Cell Lung Carcinoma - therapy; targeted therapy; Technology; Tobacco; Transcription factors; Tumors; targeted therapy; small cell lung cancer; inhibitor molecules; clinical vulnerability; heterogeneity
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms25010105

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) stands out as the most aggressive form of lung cancer, characterized by an extremely high proliferation rate and a very poor prognosis, with a 5-year survival rate that falls below 7%. Approximately two-thirds of patients receive their diagnosis when the disease has already reached a metastatic or extensive stage, leaving chemotherapy as the remaining first-line treatment option. Other than the recent advances in immunotherapy, which have shown moderate results, SCLC patients cannot yet benefit from any approved targeted therapy, meaning that this cancer remains treated as a uniform entity, disregarding intra- or inter-tumoral heterogeneity. Continuous efforts and technological improvements have enabled the identification of new potential targets that could be used to implement novel therapeutic strategies. In this review, we provide an overview of the most recent approaches for SCLC treatment, providing an extensive compilation of the targeted therapies that are currently under clinical evaluation and inhibitor molecules with promising results in vitro and in vivo.