Pathology: A Growing Field with a Bright Future

Smoking-related lung disease
in 3D: not your standard
Dani S. Zander, MD
Professor and Chair, Dept. of Pathology
Penn State College of Medicine/Penn State M.S.
Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA
Smoking-Related Lung
Chronic obstructive
lung disease (COPD):
emphysema, chronic
bronchitis, small
airway disease
Lung cancer
Bronchitis and
Some interstitial
lung diseases
 In the United States….
 Up to 5% of people are estimated to have
 The main symptom is dyspnea (difficulty
breathing) and the presence of chronic or
recurrent obstruction to airflow in the lung
Auerbach O, et al. N Engl J Med 1972; 286:853-857.
Mortality attributed to COPD
Jemal A, et al., JAMA, 2005.
Normal lung
Pathways of inhaled smoke
Centriacinar emphysema:
enlargement of the central portion of
the acinus
 The most
type of
and the usual
type of
in cigarette
Centriacinar emphysema
bronchiole and
carbon deposits
Loss (destruction!) of
alveolar septa in
center of
Peripheral air
spaces look OK
Panacinar emphysema
Bullous emphysema
Why does tobacco smoking
predispose to emphysema?
 Smoke particles → small airways
→ Neutrophils and macrophages (white blood cells)
accumulate where the smoke particles land, and
release elastase and other proteases → “digestion” of
the lung tissues
→ Oxidants (ROS) in smoke and neutrophil granules
damage the lung and inhibit antiproteases
destruction of small airways
Airspace enlargement
Decreased elastic recoil of the lung and
air trapping
Airway injury leads to decreased elastic
recoil and alveolar destruction
Chest X-ray: hyperinflation, reduced lung markings
Emphysema: what happens
with time
 Clinical
 As airways are damaged, gas exchange
(oxygen absorbed, carbon dioxide released)
becomes compromised, and patients become
progressively more short of breath, can’t
exercise like they did in the past ….. but
 Quitting the habit can STOP progression
 Lung cancer is the
leading cause of
cancer death in the
20% of all cancer
deaths in men and
11% in women
Etiology/pathogenesis of lung
Tobacco smoking
 Industrial hazards: asbestos, radiation, uranium, etc
 Air pollution
 Genetic influences
Variable risk of lung cancer among smokers
Occasional familial groupings
Common genetic alterations: C-myc amplification in small cell
carcinomas, EGFR or K-ras activation in adenocarcinomas, loss or
inactivation of p53, retinoblastoma gene or genes on the short arm of
chromosome 3 in many lung cancers
World Health Organization
Histologic Classification of Lung
 Adenocarcinoma: 25-40%
 Squamous cell carcinoma: 25-40%
 Small cell carcinoma: 20-25%
 Large cell carcinoma: 10-15%
 Adenosquamous carcinoma
 Carcinoid
 Bronchial gland carcinomas
 Others
Travis WD, et al. Pathology and Genetics. Tumours of the Lung, Pleura, Thymus, and Heart, 2004.
Squamous cell
Highly associated
with smoking
Arises in the large
airways (bronchi)
Grows rapidly and
frequently cavitates
How does normal airway
epithelium transform into
Chemicals in smoke induce ……
 A series of changes in the cellular composition
of airway lining cells (epithelial cells)
 Gene mutations and other genetic changes
Franklin WA, et al. Squamous dysplasia and carcinoma in situ. In Travis WD, et al. Pathology and Genetics. Tumours of the
Lung, Pleura, Thymus, and Heart. Lyon: IARCPress, 2004.
• 10-30% of
have mutations in
the EGFR
(epidermal growth
factor receptor)
The epidermal
growth factor
receptor (EGFR)
gene is located on
the short (p) arm of
chromosome 7 at
position 12 (7p12),
base pairs
55,086,724 to
Molecular testing of lung
 Recently guidelines drafted by the College of
American Pathologists (CAP), the International
Association for the Study of Lung Cancer
(IASLC), and the Association for Molecular
Pathology (AMP) address molecular testing to
support decisions about the use of targeted
therapeutic agents in certain lung cancers.
Evaluation for mutations of in the epidermal
growth factor receptor (EGFR) and EML4-ALK genes
is recommended for specific histologic types of lung
EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor
response in lung cancer
Maemondo M et al, NEJM, 2010
Cheng L et al, Mod Pathol, 2012
ALK inhibitor response in lung cancer
 Carlos A. C. Baptista, M.D., M.S., Ph.D.,
Associate Professor and Director of the
Plastination Lab at the Univ. of Toledo
 Plastination
A process that allows preservation of human tissue
Water and fat in tissue are replaced with silicone
over a period of months. Acetone is used to
dehydrate the specimens, which are then placed in
a silicone bath until the water and fat in the tissues
have been replaced.
This process removes toxic fixatives and the tissues
are believed to be non-infectious.
 Jonathan Nowak, MD PhD, Resident
training in Anatomic and Clinical
Pathology at Brigham and Women’s
 Melanie Johncilla, MD, Resident training
in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at
Brigham and Women’s Hospital

similar documents