SIGNIFICANCE OF NONCODING RNA IN SURGERY: NONCODING RNA IN LUNG CANCER

Recent advances in cancer research have revealed that noncoding RNAs such as microRNAs and long noncoding (lnc) RNAs play important roles in various cancers including lung cancer. Noncoding RNAs have the potential to become new biomarkers of cancer in the clinical setting, that is, they may be useful for the early detection, prognostic prediction, and prediction of sensitivity to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. It is also expected that noncoding RNAs can become new therapeutic targets. Aberrant expression of several microRNAs and lncRNAs has been reported in lung cancer, and there is a possibility of the identification of new therapeutic targets in the near future. To contribute to improved outcomes of lung cancer treatment, it is necessary to detect patients who are candidates for surgery in an earlier stage to increase the number undergoing radical surgery and to select those who are at high risk of recurrence postoperatively to increase opportunities for treatment to prevent it. Thus, it is important to discover new biomarkers for lung cancer. Surgeons can take the initiative in research, as they have easy access to specimens from lung cancer patients.