Large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) - Ronny Allan

Tag: Large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC)

A cancer of the lung with neuroendocrine differentiation in which the cells are large and look abnormal when viewed under a microscope. Often has features of both small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Statistics vary but around 3% of all primary lung neoplasms are LCNEC.

This fast-growing type of cancer represents a small percentage of all lung cancers. LCNEC of the lungs is four times more common in men than in women. Smoking is a significant risk factor for developing this type of cancer.

12Aug 2023 by Ronny Allan 2 Comments

Lung cancer diagnosed early because of new tool

Clinical Trials and Research, Patient Advocacy

I'm a believer in science overtaking mortality figures and there is evidence of that already happening when you read the latest survival figures. But too many are still succumbing to this killer disease. I also believe that artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to help. Even with cancers of the lung, where known causes are heavily linked to death rates, are decreasing but that is mainly due to preventative measures such as stopping smoking. However, not all cancers of the lung are caused by smoking. Most low-grade Lung NETs is a good example, there are others. I've had a flurry of initiatives appear in my inbox in the last month or two and wanted to document those here. These may not have an impact on you currently but a sign…

17Feb 2023 by Ronny Allan No Comments

A Phase II Clinical Trial of Nivolumab and Temozolomide for Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

Clinical Trials and Research

What is Nivolumab (Opdivo)Nivolumab is a type of cancer treatment drug called an immunotherapy. It is a treatment for a number of different types of cancer. You might have it as part of a clinical trial for other types of cancer.What is Temozolomide (Temodal)Temozolomide is a type of chemotherapy. It is well known in Neuroendocrine Cancer as the TEM in CAPTEMTrial SummaryThe purpose of the trial. Treatment options are sometimes limited in patients with metastatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN). The primary endpoint was response rate (using RECIST 1.1). Secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. Immune profiling was performed by mass cytometry to evaluate the effect on peripheral blood immune cell subsets."In summary, the combination of temozolomide and nivolumab showed promising activity in NEN, especially in lung…

03Mar 2022 by Ronny Allan No Comments

A Spotlight on Lung Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

A spotlight on NENs - Types, Awareness, Patient Advocacy, Spotlight on NENs - Types Series

WHO Classification of Tumours, 5th Edition, Volume 5: Thoracic TumoursThe aim of this spotlight is to provide a summary of the latest information on Lung Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (NEN) including the latest terminology, epidemiology data, and guidelines. This follows the publication of the Thoracic WHO classification 5th edition (2021): terminology and criteria for neuroendocrine neoplasms (Blue Book). This book has been anticipated to see if the panel compiling this follows the lead of the Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (GEPNEN) editions issued in 2017 (Endocrine) and 2019 (Digestive systems) by removing the antiquated misnomer term ''Carcinoid" in line with the recommendations made by senior NEN doctors in 2020 to have commonality across all blue books. Neuroendocrine neoplasm update: toward universal nomenclature © 2020 Society for Endocrinology 2020, Guido Rindi and Frediano Inzani.I can tell…

09May 2019 by Ronny Allan 5 Comments

A spotlight on Grade 3 (High grade) Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

A spotlight on NENs - Types, Awareness, Patient Advocacy

Reviewed and updated 30th May 2023High Grade Neuroendocrine Neoplasms - the forgotten patient group?When reading articles in the mainstream media, found in medical publications; and even listening to doctors speak about my disease, it's clear that the focus is on the term "Neuroendocrine Tumours" or NET for short. Many websites of advocate foundation organisations and specialist scientific organisations, all still use the term "NET" in their naming. I too am guilty of having a large Facebook site falling into this category. It's little wonder that those with high grade disease can often feel like the forgotten patient group. Clearly all the aforementioned organisations support all patients regardless of grade, but it's true to say that the naming and general use of terminology continues to fall behind. It's also true that…

27Oct 2015 by Ronny Allan 25 Comments

Grading and Staging – Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (incorporating WHO 2021 changes)

Patient Advocacy

One of the most discussed and sometimes confusing subjects on forums is the staging and grading of Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (NENs). Mixing them up is a common error and so it's important to understand the difference despite the apparent complexity.Stage vs GradeIn the most basic of terms, stage is the spread or extent of cancer and grade is the aggressiveness of cancer. They are totally different things and an understanding of both is important as they are critical to predicting outcomes (to a certain extent) and guiding therapy. There is no correlation between the two, you can have the lowest grade with the highest stage (actually very common with NETs). Remember S for Stage (Spread), G for Grade (Growing fast or slow)The stage is essentially worked out via scans and biopsy,…