LUNGevity Foundation

WASHINGTON – October 29, 2026 -- LUNGevity Foundation and the Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research (RTFCCR) have awarded $620,000 to an early-phase clinical trial at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center. The trial will test whether pairing two FDA-approved drugs can stop resistance to osimertinib in EGFR-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Resistance to EGFR inhibitors affects a sizable share of NSCLC patients

About 15% of NSCLC patients in the US and 35% in East Asia have tumors with an EGFR gene mutation that drives cancer growth. Multiple generations of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) stop growth in these tumors. Over time, however, tumors develop resistance and resume growing. The cause is drug-tolerant persister (DTP) cells, which adapt and evolve to evade treatment.

WASHINGTON – October 29, 2026 -- LUNGevity Foundation and patient advocacy group RETpositive have awarded a combined $340,000 to two research projects targeting drug resistance in RET-positive cancers, where tumors eventually outlast the two FDA-approved RET tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).

RET fusions drive 1% to 2% of non-small cell lung cancers

RET fusions occur when part of the RET gene joins with another gene. Beyond lung cancer, RET alterations appear in thyroid, colon and breast cancers. Both approved TKIs can be effective, but tumors evolve resistance and resume growth, which the organizations name as the critical priority for patients.

Washington, D.C. – September 29, 2026 -- LUNGevity Foundation has committed $2 million to fund two three-year clinical research projects aimed at improving the diagnosis of indeterminate pulmonary nodules (IPNs), a condition affecting more than 1.5 million Americans annually after routine chest CT scans.

The funding, awarded through the 2026 RTFCCR/LUNGevity Early Detection Award in partnership with the Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research (RTFCCR), targets a diagnostic gap that currently forces many patients into unnecessary invasive procedures or prolonged uncertainty when non-invasive tools fail to determine whether a lung nodule is benign or malignant.