Dr. Landi is an M.D., Ph.D. with training in clinical oncology and molecular epidemiology and tenured Senior investigator at the National Cancer Institute, NIH.

She has focused her research on the environmental and genetic determinants of lung cancer and melanoma, and more recently on the genomic landscape of these tumors.

In lung cancer, she is currently leading two large population-based studies and uses next-generation sequencing and genome-wide analyses to explore lung cancer etiology and clonal evolution.

In her melanoma research, she investigates the relationship of UV radiation, genetic susceptibility and other host factors in population studies and in melanoma-prone families.

ABSTRACT

Title: Sherlock-Lung: Tracing lung cancer mutational processes in never smokers

Summary: Lung cancer in never smokers includes approximately 10-25% of all lung cancers worldwide, ranks among the most common causes of cancer mortality, and has a distinct natural history, restricted histological subtype (almost exclusively adenocarcinoma), different profile of oncogenic mutations, and response to targeted therapy compared to lung cancer in smokers.

Although few risk factors are known to contribute to the etiology of lung cancer in never smokers, a large fraction of cancer cases cannot be explained by established environmental and genetic risk factors, highlighting the need for research in this area.

One promising approach to identify the etiological factors involved in lung tumorigenesis in never smokers is based on the study of the “mutational signatures” that the exogeneous and endogenous processes leave on the tumor tissue and surrounding areas. I will describe the Sherlock-Lung study that was designed at the National Cancer Institute, NIH to implement this approach.

I will present preliminary results and possibilities for collaboration.