Understanding the Importance of Biomarker Testing in Lung Cancer

Dr. Joshua K. Sabari, a thoracic medical oncologist at NYU Langone Health’s Perlmutter Cancer Center and editor-in-chief of CURE, sat down with Terri Conneran, founder of KRASKickers, at the 2025 IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer.

Conneran founded KRASKickers after discovering her own KRAS mutation following a recurrence of lung cancer. Frustrated by the lack of resources and community for patients with KRAS mutations, she aimed connect with others facing similar challenges. The organization emphasizes patient-centered support.

Transcript

Sabari: I'm Josh Sabari, a thoracic medical oncologist with NYU Langone Health, Perlmutter Cancer Center. I'm also the editor-in-chief of CURE. I'm so excited to be here today with Terri Caroline, part of the KRAS Kickers. Terri, tell me your story.

Conneran: Josh, I've got to tell you, it's really cool to be here with you, because being able to come to a conference and learn information is really where things start. Let me tell you what happened at the beginning, because my goal in life was never to be an advocate or do any of this. I was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2017. I went through standard treatment for stage 3, which included chemo and surgery. I thought I was going to get back into my normal world, but it doesn't happen that quickly.

I then got involved with some lung cancer groups and started seeing a little bit of support. I heard about these biomarkers, and you would walk into a room full of patients, and they looked no different than me, and they would be like, “Oh, ALK people, EGFR people! I'm on a TKI, etc.” And I was like, “What am I?”

So, I asked my doctor, and she says, “Well, you don't have anything. You may not have anything. Those are biomarkers, and you don't have any biomarkers,” right? Well, I stayed and got involved with a little bit of advocacy, kind of started getting my feet wet, and stayed in the lung cancer realm. Quite commonly, most people who are diagnosed don't have a biomarker, don't have anything actionable, and they don't really have any sort of place. Honestly, it's kind of like losing momentum around it. Then I had the first of what ended up being two recurrences in pretty short order, in 2019, and was moved from stage 3 to stage 4. We were able to nail it down with some radiation. I thought, “OK, I've now learned from these other advocates that if a second opinion is going to make the doctor mad, then you shouldn't have been seeing him to begin with.”

I moved away from my community oncologist and went out for a second opinion at a big NCI Cancer Center. The first thing she says is, “Wow, they did biomarker testing when you were first diagnosed and re-did it, and we checked it, and it all says KRAS G12D.” So, I had been asking the question, and nobody gave me that information! I found KRAS. I was like, “Cool, I can go find my people, right?” So, I went looking for my people…

I was able to connect and started a Facebook group in January 2020. I started the Facebook group and just started connecting people. I thought, “If I'm taking something on, I need the same sort of can-do spirit and attitude that I've got, and we're going to kick KRAS.” I'm not sure what that is, but we're going to be KRAS kicking. The KRAS Kickers were born, and most patients call it KRAS Kickers. The reason I refer to it as KRAS is so that oncologists and researchers know I know what I'm talking about. That's how it started. It evolved into something I had no idea about from the beginning, but that's what started the momentum.

Now, fast-forward five years. We're in 117 different countries. We have a reach beyond 10,000 people. When I do a video, maybe 17,000 to 20,000 people watch a view. There is an impact, and people are starting to know. It's not just about what KRAS is, but what it is. Is it G12C? Is it G12D? Is it G12A? Is it wild-type? The KRAS Kickers group is pan-tumor. We're one of the few groups that represents all cancers. Because if you're starting the molecular part of it, and you're finding that KRAS is the most common mutation in the three deadliest cancers, we have something in common.

That's how we ended up with the KRASKickers socks. The socks represent patients walking side-by-side. We are the soul of the journey, and as the soul, we need to be surrounded by the people and the support. The way we're doing that is each color on here represents the most common places you find KRAS cancers: white is lung, blue is colorectal, purple is pancreatic and gray represents not just the brain, but also many rare KRAS cancers. We want people walking side-by-side. You'll get some side-by-side on the journey because nobody's here to walk alone.

We're not necessarily focused on funding for the tomorrows, which is very important, but that's not our focus. We're not necessarily focused on scanning and getting people scanned. That's important. Our focus is right here, right now, where patients are standing and what they need. And if they're looking for understanding, they're looking for hugs and a helping hand, or if they're looking for clinical trials, that's really where we help them the most.

Sabari: Terri, your story is so powerful. It's so amazing what you're doing in the field. You mentioned that KRAS is quite common and occurs in lung, colon and pancreatic cancers. So much work needs to be done.

I remember the first time I met you in person, it was at ASCO 2023. We had just presented some [new] data, and not knowing you, you walked right up to me and handed me a pair of socks that I wear to the clinic all the time. This is a mutation that occurs in 30% of our patient population. Thank you for everything that you do. Your work is so powerful.

Transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

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