Forty years of the International Association for Study of Lung Cancer Pathology Committee

Abstract

Lung cancer classification during the last four decades has undergone major changes and evolution, mostly lead by pathologists who were actively involved in the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) Pathology Committee. The Committee members have led the development and writing of the second (1981), third (1999 and 2004), and fourth (2015) editions of the World Health Organization classifications on lung tumors. Committee members were responsible for defining and refining the classifications of small-cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma subtypes that are relevant to their clinical behavior. Particularly notable was development of the 2011 IASLC/American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society international, multidisciplinary lung adenocarcinoma classification. The multidisciplinary approach that represents the IASLC culture in research, education, and practice in clinical management of lung cancer patients have paved the way for integrating pathology practice into the new era of personalized cancer care.