American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide, and at only 18%, it has one of the lowest 5-year survival rates of all malignancies. With its highly complex mutational landscape, treatment strategies against lung cancer have proved largely ineffective. However with the recent success of immunotherapy trials in lung cancer, there is renewed enthusiasm in targeting the immune component of tumors. ⋯ Although the mechanisms through which inflammation promotes cancer are not fully understood, two connected hypotheses have emerged: an intrinsic pathway, driven by genetic alterations that lead to neoplasia and inflammation, and an extrinsic pathway, driven by inflammatory conditions that increase cancer risk. Here, we discuss the contribution of macrophages to these pathways and subsequently their roles in established tumors. We highlight studies investigating the association of macrophages with lung cancer prognosis and discuss emerging therapeutic strategies for targeting macrophages in the tumor microenvironment.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Jan 2016
Early Life Exposure to Traffic-related Air Pollution and Lung Function in Adolescence.
Exposure to air pollution during infancy has been related to lung function decrements in 8-year-old children, but whether the negative effects remain into adolescence is unknown. ⋯ Exposure to traffic-related air pollution in infancy is negatively associated with FEV1 at age 16 years, leading to increased risk of clinically important deficits.