Abstract
Availability of tumour material at baseline and disease progression is increasingly important for patient management in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), especially in tyrosine kinase and immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment. Here, we report the experience with prospective biobanking for advanced NSCLC from a pilot project in the academic setting. Main objective was the longitudinal collection of snap-frozen in addition to formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) biopsies required for routine diagnostics, along with blood samples and detailed clinical annotation using standardized questionnaires. Over five years, 205 patients were enrolled yielding 387 cryoconserved biopsies and 1098 serum, plasma and buffy-coat samples. The feasibility of obtaining cryoconserved in addition to FFPE biopsies was 89 % for newly diagnosed cases but dropped down to 56 % and 47 % at first and second disease progression, respectively. Main obstacle was increased procedural risk due to patient deterioration, but no complications occurred. Biopsies had a tumour cellularity of 34 % and yielded 13.6 μg DNA and 12 μg RNA in median. Despite the poor condition and limited prognosis of most NSCLC patients, systematic, serial biomaterial acquisition including routine collection of cryoconserved biopsies is feasible in order to facilitate individualized management and support research that will advance therapeutic options.
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