Dr. Hellmann on Tumor Mutational Burden Testing in Patients With Lung Cancer

Matthew D. Hellmann, MD, assistant attending physician, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the process of tumor mutational burden (TMB) testing in patients with lung cancer.

Physicians have increasingly started to visualize lung cancer as a pie chart in which patients are defined by their distinct biology. EGFR, ALK, RET, ROS1, and BRAF are all examples of identified molecular markers that specific therapies can target.

Although TMB might sound as if it's a separate test, Hellman says it is actually additional data physicians get from the routine molecular analysis, which should be done in all patients with lung cancer. Molecular profiling has enabled physicians to understand both molecular aberrations and TMB. This ultimately brings a new piece of the pie that contains specific therapy indications with exceptional opportunity for long-term benefit, says Hellman.