Lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the United
States and worldwide. They share a common environmental risk factor in cigarette smoke exposure and a genetic predisposition
represented by the incidence of these diseases in only a fraction of smokers. The presence of COPD increases the risk of
lung cancer up to 4.5-fold. To investigate commonalities in disease mechanisms and perspectives for disease chemoprevention,
the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) held a workshop. The participants
identified four research objectives: 1) clarify common epidemiological characteristics of lung cancer and COPD; 2) identify
shared genetic and epigenetic risk factors; 3) identify and validate biomarkers, molecular signatures, and imaging-derived measurements
of each disease; and 4) determine common and disparate pathogenetic mechanisms. These objectives should be
reached via four research approaches: 1) identify, publicize, and enable the evaluation and analysis of existing datasets and
repositories of biospecimens; 2) obtain phenotypic and outcome data and biospecimens from large studies of subjects with and/
or at risk for COPD and lung cancer; 3) develop and use animal and other preclinical models to investigate pathogenetic links
between the diseases; and 4) conduct early-phase clinical trials of potential chemopreventive agents. To foster much needed
research interactions, two final recommendations were made by the participants: 1) incorporate baseline phenotyping and outcome
measures for both diseases in future longitudinal studies of each disease and 2) expand collaborative efforts between the
NCI and NHLBI.
J Natl Cancer Inst 2009;101: 554 –