Cytomorphological features of anaplastic lymphoma kinase‐positive lung cancer

Abstract

Cytomorphological analysis can aid in distinguishing ALK (+) from ALK (−) lung cancers. However, there is a need to devise a uniform set of cytological paramaters that can clearly differentiate the three types of mutated lung adenocarcinomas (EGFR, ALK and ROS1) before they can guide targeted molecular testing of small tissue samples.

How can non‐small cell carcinoma of the lung be typed accurately for optimum personalised cancer therapy?

“…Histochemical analysis with appropriate mucin stains or other special stains may take tumour typing further but frequently the pathologist will rely on immunohistochemical assessment for the final diagnostic label. Aggrawal et al remind us that beyond typing, there may be morphological clues that may predict underlying molecular changes, although there is of course no substitute for formal biomarker/molecular analysis.…”