title: Lung cancer cell lines as tools for biomedical discovery and research.
abstract: Lung cancer cell lines have made a substantial contribution to lung cancer translational research and biomedical discovery. A systematic approach to initiating and characterizing cell lines from small cell and non-small cell lung carcinomas has led to the current collection of more than 200 lung cancer cell lines, a number that exceeds those for other common epithelial cancers combined. The ready availability and widespread dissemination of the lines to investigators worldwide have resulted in more than 9000 citations, including multiple examples of important biomedical discoveries. The high (but not perfect) genomic similarities between lung cancer cell lines and the lung tumor type from which they were derived provide evidence of the relevance of their use. However, major problems including misidentification or cell line contamination remain. Ongoing studies and new approaches are expected to reveal the full potential of the lung cancer cell line panel.
authors.affiliation: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 6000 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390-8593, USA. adi.gazdar@utsouthwestern.edu
authors.forename: Adi F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Gazdar
authors.forename: Luc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Girard
authors.forename: William W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Lockwood
authors.forename: Wan L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Minna
mesh_terms: D002173:Cancer Care Facilities; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000188:drug therapy; D018288:Carcinoma, Small Cell / Q000188:drug therapy; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor / Q000187:drug effects / Q000382:microbiology / Q000821:virology; D004354:Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008654:Mesothelioma / Q000188:drug therapy; D009174:Mycoplasma / Q000302:isolation & purification; D054547:National Cancer Institute (U.S.); D010997:Pleural Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous; D014481:United States