 The EML4-ALK fusion gene is more frequently found in younger, never smoking patients with lung cancer.     ///    "We, therefore, hypothesized that SHS, which can induce DNA damage, is associated with the EML4-ALK fusion gene. "    ///    We compared the frequency of the EML4-ALK fusion gene among 197 never smoker patients with lung cancer with and without a history of exposure to SHS during childhood at Mayo Clinic.     ///    The EML4-ALK fusion gene is not enriched in tumors from individuals exposed to SHS during childhood.     ///    Evidence that the lung Adenocarcinoma EML4-ALK fusion gene is not caused by exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke during childhood..     ///    "The EML4-ALK fusion gene was detected in 33% of cases from never smokers with a history of SHS exposure during childhood, whereas 47% of never smoking lung cancer cases without a history of childhood SHS exposure tested positive for the fusion gene. "    ///    These data suggest that childhood exposure to SHS is not a significant etiologic cause of the EML4-ALK fusion gene in lung cancer.. 