EPIDEMIOLOGICAL AND MOLECULAR PROFILE OF NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER BASED ON THE EXPRESSION OF VEGF, ALK AND PD-L1 IN PATIENTS FROM A TOWN IN THE OF RIO GRANDE DO SUL

Introduction: The most recent global estimate indicates that there will be more than 18 million new cases of cancer (INCA, 2018). Patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have a poor prognosis, with a 5-year survival of only 10.7%. The genes involved in carcinogenesis and progression in NSCLC are vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) and the Anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene (ALK). The therapeutic scenario has made a great progress in recent years with the advent of molecular diagnosis, allowing the choice of the best therapy in the management of the disease. Method This paper included confirmed cases of NSCLC, from 2017 to April 2022, from a private pathology laboratory in the municipality of Erechim-RS. Reports with the expressions PD-L1, ALK and VEGF mutation were analyzed. The study maintained patient anonymity, and was approved by the URI-Erechim ethics committee. Results: 267 cases of NSCLC were evaluated, with a mean age of 69 years, and 21.3% of patients aged less than or equal to 60 years, 78.7% were older than this. 61% were male and 38.9% female. The VEGF gene was present in 74.5% of cases. 80.4% did not detect any mutations. ALK were present in 11.1% of cases. PD-L1 was tested in all. 52.2% showed a low-grade expression and 47.7% presented a higher expression. This result is superior to 37.9% reported in another Brazilian study. Besides, more than half of the patients had some degree of positivity to PD-L1, although 31.8% had SPT ≥ 50%. 34.5% of patients had mutations in the VEGF gene, a higher proportion than the 21.6% reported in another Brazilian study. Only 10.7% of the cases had PD-L1 mutation and concomitant VEGF. In relation to ALK and PD-L1, a correlation was identified, however, it did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion: The frequency of NSCLC biomarkers was analyzed in 267 patients from the city of Erechim-RS. A parallel with references and data published previously was done. There was no significant relationship between these biomarkers and, although the frequency of PD-L1 expression and VEGF mutation status were similar to other national studies, the frequency of ALK gene expression was higher than the data already published. Therefore, more research is necessary to understand how these biomarkers are distributed in a heterogeneous population, contributing to specific therapies and a better quality of life for these patients.