Its leaders are researchers from the Francis Crick Institute in London who have carried out an epidemiological study with data from 32,957 individuals to determine the correlation between fine particles of air pollution and lung cancer, and have used mouse models to find out the cellular processes that could be behind.
Air pollution is a cocktail of many toxic components and the term PM -acronym for Particulate Matter- is used to describe a mixture of small solid and liquid particles found in the air.
These particles are divided into categories according to their size and the especially fine ones -such as PM2.5 and PM0.1- are the most worrying in terms of harmful effects on health.
Increased exposure to pollution is associated with a higher incidence of lung cancer, and one of the main causes is precisely those fine particles of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5), which can penetrate deep into the lungs.
The interaction between environmental triggers and genetic mutations associated with this cancer (such as those of the EGFR or KRAS genes, two of the most frequently mutated genes in non-small cell lung cancer) is not well understood.
Led by Charles Swanton, the team investigated the relationship between PM2.5 exposure and the frequency of lung cancer in 32,957 individuals with an EGFR gene mutation from four countries (England, Taiwan, South Korea, and Canada). This type also occurs in non-smoking patients.
The authors report that exposure to increasing levels of PM2.5 is associated with an estimated increased incidence of EGFR-mutant lung cancer.