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Explore Biomarker Testing

Lung Cancer

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Biomarker testing can lead to precise lung cancer care.

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While lung cancer is more common than some may realize, biomarker testing can reveal what makes each subtype unique. It can help doctors move from one-size-fits-all care to more personalized treatment plans. Even if tests show no biomarkers, it’s still important and helps your care team better evaluate treatment options.

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Did you know?

Your treatment plan can be based on your biomarkers.

Your plan could include targeted therapy — treatment designed to act on specific features of cancer cells, such as proteins or gene changes identified through biomarker testing, although it can also affect some normal cells.

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About biomarker testing

What are lung cancer biomarkers?

Cancer biomarkers are small signals in tumor cells, like gene changes or certain levels of proteins, that can show how your cancer behaves and how it may change, grow, or respond to treatment. Even two people with the same type of lung cancer can have very different biomarkers.

By testing for them, your care team can create an individualized treatment plan — and adjust it if the disease changes over time. In lung cancer, a few common biomarkers include PD-L1, KRAS, EGFR, ALK, and BRAF.

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Let’s go over a few of the basics.

Biomarker testing can make a difference in your lung cancer care. You probably have questions. We have answers.

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Who should get tested?

Anyone who's been newly diagnosed with lung cancer, or is starting new or alternative care, should ask about biomarker testing.

It’s important for lung cancer because certain sub types can spread quickly. By looking at the makeup of your cancer, testing can help predict whether the tumor will grow slowly or aggressively — and can help your doctor assess the risk of recurrence if you've already had surgery to remove tumor tissue.

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What will my results show?

In lung cancer, biomarker testing can show your subtype and reveal if you have actionable biomarkers that can guide more personalized care.

Two main types of biomarkers can highlight important results: mutations that help your cancer cells grow, and immune-related biomarkers that tell your doctor how you may respond to immunotherapy.

Even if your results turn out inconclusive or negative for biomarkers, testing can still help your doctor evaluate your care options and let you know if you need to get tested again.

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Does this impact my care?

If you have any known lung cancer biomarkers, your doctor can use that information to create, inform, or adjust a personalized treatment plan.

That’s because certain biomarkers, like EGFR or KRAS, have unique characteristics that can indicate the type of treatment you’re more likely to respond to. This can help determine your eligibility for targeted therapy, how you might respond to immunotherapies — and it can help eliminate treatment options that are less likely to be effective.

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When do I talk to a doctor?

Ask about biomarker testing as soon as you’re diagnosed with lung cancer, if you start discussing new treatments, or when switching your treatment.

Having the conversation early can help put you on a better, more informed path, which can be important for quick-spreading sub types of lung cancer, like Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC).

As you talk more with your doctor, they may recommend comprehensive biomarker testing that looks for all recommended mutations at once, instead of single-gene testing that looks for one biomarker at a time.

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What do I need to start asking about testing?

We know talking about biomarkers can feel overwhelming. Knowing what to ask, and having a few talking points ready, can help.

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Here’s how they’re tested.

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Liquid Biopsies

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Tissue Biopsies

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Liquid Biopsies

As a first strategy, a liquid biopsy is used in 76.5% of all lung cancer cases. This analyzes bits of tumor material found in bodily fluids.

Liquid biopsies are usually done with a blood draw in a clinic or your doctor’s office, and are less invasive, faster to complete, and easier to repeat than tissue biopsies.

They can reveal some of the same information as tissue testing, but it has its limits—the results may not always match tissue biopsies and may miss some cancer changes.

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Tissue Biopsies

Testing can also be done with a tissue biopsy—a procedure where a small piece of your lung cancer tumor is taken for closer examination.

While doctors can extract a lot of information from a liquid biopsy, a tissue analysis remains the gold standard. It measures how much your cancer has progressed, checks for mutations in a tumor’s genes and proteins, and can point to targeted therapies—or predict if immunotherapy may work for you.

However, it’s also more invasive. It may require an overnight stay at the hospital after a surgical procedure to collect a tissue sample.

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Build your knowledge

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Biomarkers can change over time.

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Biomarker changes can occur over time and can reveal the way your tumor is growing or changing, or if it’s developing a resistance to treatment.

New biomarkers can indicate alternative treatment options that may work more effectively. That’s why it’s important to talk to your doctor about retesting before starting a new treatment plan.

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It’s actually true!

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Talk to your doctor

Do you have an appointment soon?

Get a full list of questions to ask about biomarkers, testing, and how it could impact your treatment plan.

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Still have questions?

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What biomarkers do doctors look for in lung cancer?

Some important lung cancer biomarkers are EGFR, KRAS, BRAF, ALK, and PD-L1. But there are several other biomarkers that your doctor may test for as well. Make sure to ask about which biomarkers they’ll be looking for.

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Where do I go to get tested?

Where you begin biomarker testing will depend on your need for a liquid biopsy or tissue biopsy.

In most lung cancer cases, initial testing begins with a liquid biopsy that can be done with a blood draw. Because blood draws are simpler procedures, they’re often completed in a doctor’s office or clinic.

If a more invasive tissue biopsy is required, you can expect small samples of your lung tumor to be surgically removed at a hospital, which may require an overnight stay.

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What should I understand about my test results?

When you get your test results, your doctor will go over them with you to help you understand what they mean and how they can be used to determine your treatment options. You’ll most likely discuss:

What biomarkers were found—or if no biomarkers showed up
What treatment options match those specific biomarkers, and which ones may be available to you
If there aren’t treatment matches— what potential clinical trials may be available for those biomarkers, or other treatment options

Build a biomarker discussion guide you can take to your next appointment.

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Will I need to get retested?

Depending on how well your current treatment is working, your doctor may want to have you retested for any changes to your disease and the biomarkers that may show up.

Since changes can occur over time, it can reveal the way your tumor is growing or changing, or if it’s developing a resistance to treatment.

New biomarkers can indicate alternative treatment options that may work more effectively.

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Are there communities and advocacy groups I can join?

There are many patient advocacy and support groups in the lung cancer community. Here are a couple to get you started with connecting to other patients and caregivers, as well as resources to support you during your journey:

lungevity.org

go2.org

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