BACKGROUND

The discovery of oncogenic drivers has ushered in a new era for lung cancer, but the role of these mutations in different racial/ethnic minorities has been understudied. The Lung Cancer Mutation Consortium 1 (LCMC1) database was investigated to evaluate the frequency and impact of oncogenic drivers in lung adenocarcinomas in the racial/ethnic minority patient population.

METHODS

Patients with metastatic lung adenocarcinomas from 14 US sites were enrolled in the LCMC1. Tumor samples were collected from 2009 through 2012 with multiplex genotyping performed on 10 oncogenic drivers (KRAS, epidermal growth factor receptor [EGFR], anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangements, ERBB2 [formerly human epidermal growth factor receptor 2], BRAF, PIK3CA, MET amplification, NRAS, MEK1, and AKT1). Patients were classified as white, Asian, African American (AA), or Latino. The driver mutation frequency, the treatments, and the survival from diagnosis were determined.

RESULTS

One thousand seven patients were included. Whites represented the majority (n = 838); there were 60 AAs, 48 Asians, and 28 Latinos. Asian patients had the highest rate of oncogenic drivers with 81% (n = 39), and they were followed by Latinos with 68% (n = 19), whites with 61% (n = 511), and AAs with 53% (n = 32). For AAs, the EGFR mutation frequency was 22%, the KRAS frequency was 17%, and the ALK frequency was 4%. Asian patients were most likely to receive targeted therapies (51% vs 27% for AAs). There were no significant differences in overall survival.

CONCLUSIONS

Differences were observed in the prevalence of oncogenic drivers in lung adenocarcinomas and in subsequent treatments among racial groups. The lowest frequency of drivers was seen for AA patients; however, more than half of AA patients had a driver, and those treated with targeted therapy had outcomes similar to those of other races. Cancer 2016;122:766-772. © 2015 American Cancer Society.