Journal of Clinical & Experimental Pathology
Open Access

Abstract

The new 2015 edition of the WHO classification and recommendations of IASLC (International Association of Study of Lung Cancer) emphasize the importance of accurate sub-classification of lung cancers for targeted therapy. Lung cancer is a heterogeneous group of neoplasms and accurate diagnosis and sub-classification on small biopsies can be challenging. Recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses have shown that interobserver disagreement rates on the sub-classification of nonĂ¢Â?Â?small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are approximately 10-20% in resected specimens and 20-30% in small biopsy specimen without immunohistochemical (IHC) stains. The morphological heterogeneity of the lung cancer is also correlated with certain molecular alterations. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce newly updated guidelines of WHO and IASLC into our daily practice to improve the accuracy of sub-classification of lung cancer for targeted therapy, particularly in small biopsy specimens.

Biography

Qing Kay Li is an Associate Professor of Pathology and Oncology at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. Her areas of clinical expertise include Surgical Pathology, Cytopathology, and Oncological Pathology. She is also a Faculty and PI at Johns Hopkins Biomarker Discovery Center. She serves as Editorial Board Member for several journals; Committee Member of the American Society of Cytopathology, Papanicolaou Society of Cytopathology, NIH/NCI cancer working groups; study sections of government agents and private organizations. She has more than 100 publications, including several book chapters and books.

E-mail: qli23@jhmi.edu