Over the past 30 years, there has been a shift in cancer diagnostics from a histology-based approach to a molecular-based approach.
This has facilitated the continued development and refinement of personalised cancer therapies.
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a heterogeneous disease involving mutations in a number of different genes.
Rearrangement of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene has been implicated in the development of NSCLC and this rearrangement can lead to the expression of an echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4-ALK (EML4-ALK) fusion protein. Such ALK gene rearrangements can be detected using a variety of laboratory techniques, including reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, DNA sequencing, immunohistochemistry (IHC), and fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH).
Professor Pauwels is a specialist on this topic and invites pathologists to attend a Technical training workshop at the University Hospital Antwerp (UZA), Belgium.
The various laboratory techniques used to identify ALK-positive tumour samples will be described, with particular reference to IHC and FISH.
Practical workshop sessions will provide expert advice on how to analyse and interpret the results of these tests.
Pfizer ontwikkelt innovatieve geneesmiddelen die bijdragen aan de gezondheid en kwaliteit van leven.
Vanuit haar visie en missie ziet Pfizer het toenemend als haar taak om te faciliteren op het gebied van deskundigheidsbevordering en nascholing. Dit gebeurd onder de vlag van 'Pfizer Educatie'. De door Pfizer Educatie ontwikkelde nascholingen richten zich niet alleen op indicatiegebieden, maar bestrijken vooral ook het brede terrein van praktijkondersteuning in algemene zin.