DeCure's autonomous Cancer AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for Lung Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma — screening already-approved drugs against its 6-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleLung Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma maps to a 6-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for lung signet ring cell carcinoma is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit alpha (PIK3CA) — PIK3CA is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
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helix sheet 2sdrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 4JPS · 2.2 Å · ligand (2S)-N~1~-{4-methyl-5-[2-(1,1,1-trifluoro-2-methylpropan-2-yl)pyridin-4-yl]-1,3-thiazol-2-yl}pyrrolidine-1,2-dicarboxamide (1LT). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
Fifteen cases of primary signet ring cell adenocarcinoma of the lung were described in a 2001 study. Patients were 12 men and 3 women, mean age 52.5 years. Nine underwent resection; the rest were biopsied. All tumours contained more than 75% signet ring cells. Immunohistochemistry showed strong staining for TTF-1 (6 of 6 cases) and CEA (9 of 9 cases); 3 of 6 cases were positive for cytokeratin 7, and all 6 tested were negative for cytokeratin 20, ER, PR and GCDFP-15. Follow-up on 11 patients showed that six died within one year and five were alive from 3 to 36 months after diagnosis. The authors stressed that these tumours can be mistaken for metastases from another primary site.
A 2021 case report described a pure signet ring cell carcinoma of the lung in an HIV-positive heavy smoker, discovered incidentally on chest x-ray. The authors stated that surgical therapy combined with chemoradiotherapy is the gold standard, but they provided no survival data for that patient. A 1994 case report described a patient diagnosed by bronchoscopic biopsy who received cisplatin and etoposide chemotherapy followed by local radiotherapy; that patient died of disease six months after diagnosis.
Across these reports, the consistent picture is that primary signet ring cell carcinoma of the lung is rare, aggressive, and usually diagnosed at an advanced stage. No abstract reports a drug specifically repurposed for this histology, and no trial data exist. What is missing is any prospective study, any biomarker-driven stratification, and any funding for a dedicated trial in this specific subtype.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Histopathology · 2001 · 93 citations · open access
Primary signet ring cell adenocarcinomas of the lung: a clinicopathological study of 15 cases
AbstractAIMS: We describe the clinicopathological characteristics of 15 cases of primary signet ring cell adenocarcinoma of the lung and highlight the importance of recognizing that not all adenocarcinomas with signet ring cell features represent metastatic adenocarcinomas. METHODS AND RESULTS: We evaluated the clinicopathological and immunohistochemical features of 15 cases of signet ring cell adenocarcinoma of the lung. The patients were 12 men and three women, age 30-75 years (mean 52.5 years). No evidence of a primary tumour elsewhere could be found on thorough clinical examination. Nine patients underwent resection and the remainder were biopsied. The tumours ranged from 18 to 80 mm in greatest dimension. Microscopically, two distinct patterns of growth were recognized: acinar and diffuse. The tumours were characterized by the presence of >75% signet ring cells. Periodic acid-Schiff and mucicarmine showed strong intracellular positive staining. Immunohistochemical stains for TTF-1 (6/6) and CEA (9/9) showed strong positive reaction in all cases evaluated. Three out of six cases were also positive for cytokeratin 7. All the tumours (6/6) were negative for cytokeratin 20, ER, PR and GCDFP-15. Follow-up information was obtained in 11 patients; six patients died within 1 year and five patients were alive from 3 to 36 months after initial diagnosis. CONCLUSION: These cases highlight an unusual histological growth pattern of primary lung adenocarcinoma that may be mistaken for a metastasis from an occult primary. The recognition of this pattern of lung tumours is important for proper treatment.
Thoracic Cancer · 2021 · 3 citations · open access
Primary signet‐ring cell carcinoma of the lung in an HIV‐positive patient
AbstractPrimary lung signet-ring cell carcinomas are a rare entity and only a few cases of pure signet-ring cell carcinomas of the lung are reported in the English literature. They usually have an aggressive behavior and a poor prognosis because in most cases they are identified at an advanced stage. We present a unique case of primary signet-ring cell carcinoma of the lung because the patient was HIV positive, a heavy smoker, and also the tumor, discovered incidentally during chest x-ray, was a pure type of signet-ring cell carcinoma. Surgical therapy associated with chemoradiotherapy represents the gold standard in the care of these patients.
A Case of Primary Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma of the Lung
AbstractSignet ring cell carcinoma has been previously described in many organs, most frequently in the stomach, and rarely in the colon, rectum, gallbladder, pancreas, breast, nadsal cavity, prostate, urinary bladder and ureter. Signet ring cell carcinomas in the lung, especially, when examined by small biopsies, are generally believed to be metastatic. This case was diagnosed by bronchoscopic biopsy. We also examined various organs by noninvasive method, including UGI series, barium enema and abdomen CT scan, but all studies were nomal. Patient received cisplatin and etoposide combination chemotherapy followed by local radiotherapy as a primary non-small cell lung cancer. Patient died of his disease 6 months after diagnosis. Now we report a case of primary signet ring cell carcinoma of the lung.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
