Mouse models of lung cancer

Human lung cancer is responsible for approximately 30% of all cancer deaths worldwide with >160,000 deaths in the United States alone annually. Recent advances in the identification of novel mutations relevant to lung cancer from a myriad of genomic studies might translate into meaningful diagnostic and therapeutic progress. Towards this end, a genetic model animal system that can validate the oncogenic roles of these mutations in vivo would facilitate the understanding of the pathogenesis of lung cancer as well as provide ideal preclinical models for targeted therapy testing. The mouse is a promising model system, as complex human genetic traits causal to lung cancer, from inherited polymorphisms to somatic mutations, can be recapitulated in its genome via genetic manipulation. We present here a brief overview of the existing mouse models of lung cancers and the challenges and opportunities for building the next generation of lung cancer mouse models.