Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is a very common and lethal kind of lung malignancy. An increasing number of studies indicated that tissue-resident memory T (T_RM) cells played significant roles in anti-cancer immunity. In our previous study, EXO1 was found to be a core gene for T_RM cells in the prognosis of LUAD. However, the roles of EXO1 in the tumor microenvironment, and its application in the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of LUAD are still inadequately explored. In this study, the RNA expression, DNA methylation, CNV, somatic mutation data of EXO1, and the corresponding patients’ clinical information from publicly available databases were analyzed using bioinformatic methods. The results were validated through immunohistochemical staining of EXO1 in LUAD samples. The results showed EXO1 was aberrantly highly expressed in LUAD tissues. High expression of EXO1 was a risky factor for LUAD patients. The expression level of EXO1 was associated with many clinical features such as TNM stages. It can also distinguish normal tissues and LUAD tumor tissues accurately. EXO1 expression was correlated with the infiltration of immune cells, and high expression of EXO1 was an adverse effect on LUAD patients receiving anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy. Moreover, patients with EXO1 mutation had worse DSS, DFI and PFI.

Purpose: To investigate the changes in pulmonary function after computed tomography (CT)-guided microwave ablation (MWA) in patients with a malignant lung tumor. Materials and Methods: From June 2020 to January 2022, 133 patients with a malignant lung tumor who underwent CT-guided percutaneous MWA were included in the study. Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) were performed before (the baseline) and 1 month after the MWA. Vital capacity (VC), forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), FEV1%, maximum mid-expiratory flow (MMEF), and diffusion capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO-SB) at 1 month post MWA were compared with that at the baseline. The time of procedure and post-procedure length of hospital stay were also recorded. Results: The mean VC, FVC, FEV1, FEV1%, MMEF, and DLCO-SB at the baseline and 1 month post MWA were 3.23 ± 0.75 and 3.22 ± 0.77 ( P = 0.926), 3.20 ± 0.75 and 3.21 ± 0.77 ( P = 0.702), 2.35 ± 0.70 and 2.35 ± 0.71 ( P = 0.992), 91.97 ± 23.14 and 91.87 ± 23.16 ( P = 0.837), 1.83 ± 0.93 and 1.81 ± 0.95 ( P = 0.476), and 6.38 ± 1.67 and 6.32 ± 1.62 ( P = 0.389), respectively. There was no significant difference in the PFT results before and 1 month post MWA. The mean time of procedure and post-MWA length of hospital stay were 33 min and 2.5 days, respectively. Conclusions: MWA is a lung parenchyma-sparing local treatment, and pulmonary function at 1 month post MWA was not statistically different from the baseline, indicating that MWA may not affect pulmonary function.

With the addition of immunotherapy, lung cancer, one of the most common cancers with high mortality rates, has broadened the treatment landscape. Immune checkpoint inhibitors have demonstrated significant efficacy in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and are now used as the first-line therapy for metastatic disease, consolidation therapy after radiotherapy for unresectable locally advanced disease, and adjuvant therapy after surgical resection and chemotherapy for resectable disease. The use of adjuvant and neoadjuvant immunotherapy in patients with early-stage NSCLC, however, is still debatable. We will address several aspects, namely the initial efficacy of monotherapy, the efficacy of combination chemotherapy, immunotherapy-related biomarkers, adverse effects, ongoing randomized controlled trials, and current issues and future directions for immunotherapy in early-stage NSCLC will be discussed here.