Dissection of PIK3CA Aberration for Cervical Adenocarcinoma Outcomes.

Personalized treatment of genetically stratified subgroups has the potential to improve outcomes in many malignant tumors. This study distills clinically meaningful prognostic/predictive genomic marker for cervical adenocarcinoma using signature genomic aberrations and single-point nonsynonymous mutation-specific droplet digital PCR (ddPCR). Mutations in PIK3CA E542K, E545K, or H1047R were detected in 41.7% of tumors. PIK3CA mutation detected in the patient's circulating DNA collected before treatment or during follow-up was significantly associated with decreased progression-free survival or overall survival. PIK3CA mutation in the circulating DNA during follow-up after treatment predicted recurrence with 100% sensitivity and 64.29% specificity. It is the first indication of the predictive power of PIK3CA mutations in cervical adenocarcinoma. The work contributes to the development of liquid biopsies for follow up surveillance and a possibility of tailoring management of this particular women's cancer.

ViroPanel: Hybrid Capture and Massively Parallel Sequencing for Simultaneous Detection and Profiling of Oncogenic Virus Infection and Tumor Genome.

Precision cancer medicine aims to classify tumors by site, histology, and molecular testing to determine an individualized profile of cancer alterations. Viruses are a major contributor to oncogenesis, causing 12% to 20% of all human cancers. Several viruses are causal of specific types of cancer, promoting dysregulation of signaling pathways and resulting in carcinogenesis. In addition, integration of viral DNA into the host (human) genome is a hallmark of some viral species. Tests for the presence of viral infection used in the clinical setting most often use quantitative PCR or immunohistochemical staining. Both approaches have limitations and need to be interpreted/scored appropriately. In some cases, results are not binary (virus present/absent), and it is unclear what to do with a weakly or partially positive result. In addition, viral testing of cancers is performed separately from tests to detect human genomic alterations and can thus be time-consuming and use limited valuable specimen. We present a hybrid-capture and massively parallel sequencing approach to detect viral infection that is integrated with targeted genomic analysis to provide a more complete tumor profile from a single sample.

A Comprehensive PDX Gastric Cancer Collection Captures Cancer Cell-Intrinsic Transcriptional MSI Traits.

Gastric cancer is the world's third leading cause of cancer mortality. In spite of significant therapeutic improvements, the clinical outcome for patients with advanced gastric cancer is poor; thus, the identification and validation of novel targets is extremely important from a clinical point of view. We generated a wide, multilevel platform of gastric cancer models, comprising 100 patient-derived xenografts (PDX), primary cell lines, and organoids. Samples were classified according to their histology, microsatellite stability, Epstein-Barr virus status, and molecular profile. This PDX platform is the widest in an academic institution, and it includes all the gastric cancer histologic and molecular types identified by The Cancer Genome Atlas. PDX histopathologic features were consistent with those of patients' primary tumors and were maintained throughout passages in mice. Factors modulating grafting rate were histology, TNM stage, copy number gain of tyrosine kinases/KRAS genes, and microsatellite stability status. PDX and PDX-derived cells/organoids demonstrated potential usefulness to study targeted therapy response. Finally, PDX transcriptomic analysis identified a cancer cell-intrinsic microsatellite instability (MSI) signature, which was efficiently exported to gastric cancer, allowing the identification, among microsatellite stable (MSS) patients, of a subset of MSI-like tumors with common molecular aspects and significant better prognosis. In conclusion, we generated a wide gastric cancer PDX platform, whose exploitation will help identify and validate novel "druggable" targets and optimize therapeutic strategies. Moreover, transcriptomic analysis of gastric cancer PDXs allowed the identification of a cancer cell-intrinsic MSI signature, recognizing a subset of MSS patients with MSI transcriptional traits, endowed with better prognosis. SIGNIFICANCE: This study reports a multilevel platform of gastric cancer PDXs and identifies a MSI gastric signature that could contribute to the advancement of precision medicine in gastric cancer.

Recurrent genetic HLA loss in AML relapsed after matched unrelated allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.

Immune evasion is a hallmark of cancer and a central mechanism underlying acquired resistance to immune therapy. In allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT), late relapses can arise after prolonged alloreactive T-cell control, but the molecular mechanisms of immune escape remain unclear. To identify mechanisms of immune evasion, we performed a genetic analysis of serial samples from 25 patients with myeloid malignancies who relapsed ≥1 year after alloHCT. Using targeted sequencing and microarray analysis to determine HLA allele-specific copy number, we identified copy-neutral loss of heterozygosity events and focal deletions spanning class 1 HLA genes in 2 of 12 recipients of matched unrelated-donor HCT and in 1 of 4 recipients of mismatched unrelated-donor HCT. Relapsed clones, although highly related to their antecedent pretransplantation malignancies, frequently acquired additional mutations in transcription factors and mitogenic signaling genes. Previously, the study of relapse after haploidentical HCT established the paradigm of immune evasion via loss of mismatched HLA. Here, in the context of matched unrelated-donor HCT, HLA loss provides genetic evidence that allogeneic immune recognition may be mediated by minor histocompatibility antigens and suggests opportunities for novel immunologic approaches for relapse prevention.

Low-level mosaicism in tuberous sclerosis complex: prevalence, clinical features, and risk of disease transmission.

PURPOSE: To examine the prevalence and spectrum of mosaic variant allele frequency (MVAF) in tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) patients with low-level mosaicism and correlate genetic findings with clinical features and transmission risk. METHODS: Massively parallel sequencing was performed on 39 mosaic TSC patients with 170 different tissue samples. RESULTS: TSC mosaic patients (MVAF: 0-10%, median 1.7% in blood DNA) had a milder and distinct clinical phenotype in comparison with other TSC series, with similar facial angiofibromas (92%) and kidney angiomyolipomas (83%), and fewer seizures, cortical tubers, and multiple other manifestations (p < 0.0001 for six features). MVAF of TSC1/TSC2 pathogenic variants was highly variable in different tissue samples. Remarkably, skin lesions were the most reliable tissue for variant identification, and 6 of 39 (15%) patients showed no evidence of the variant in blood. Semen analysis showed absence of the variant in 3 of 5 mosaic men. The expected distribution of MVAF in comparison with that observed here suggests that there is a considerable number of individuals with low-level mosaicism for a TSC2 pathogenic variant who are not recognized clinically. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide information on variability in MVAF and risk of transmission that has broad implications for other mosaic genetic disorders.

Germline cancer susceptibility gene variants, somatic second hits, and survival outcomes in patients with resected pancreatic cancer.

PURPOSE: Germline variants in double-strand DNA damage repair (dsDDR) genes (e.g., BRCA1/2) predispose to pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and may predict sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy and poly(ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. We sought to determine the prevalence and significance of germline cancer susceptibility gene variants in PDAC with paired somatic and survival analyses. METHODS: Using a customized next-generation sequencing panel, germline/somatic DNA was analyzed from 289 patients with resected PDAC ascertained without preselection for high-risk features (e.g., young age, personal/family history). All identified variants were assessed for pathogenicity. Outcomes were analyzed using multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression. RESULTS: We found that 28/289 (9.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 6.5-13.7%) patients carried pathogenic/likely pathogenic germline variants, including 21 (7.3%) dsDDR gene variants (3 BRCA1, 4 BRCA2, 14 other dsDDR genes [ATM, BRIP1, CHEK2, NBN, PALB2, RAD50, RAD51C]), 3 Lynch syndrome, and 4 other genes (APC p.I1307K, CDKN2A, TP53). Somatic sequencing and immunohistochemistry identified second hits in the tumor in 12/27 (44.4%) patients with germline variants (1 failed sequencing). Compared with noncarriers, patients with germline dsDDR gene variants had superior overall survival (hazard ratio [HR] 0.54; 95% CI 0.30-0.99; P = 0.05). CONCLUSION: Nearly 10% of PDAC patients harbor germline variants, although the majority lack somatic second hits, the therapeutic significance of which warrants further study.

Genomic Heterogeneity as a Barrier to Precision Medicine in Gastroesophageal Adenocarcinoma.

Gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GEA) is a lethal disease where targeted therapies, even when guided by genomic biomarkers, have had limited efficacy. A potential reason for the failure of such therapies is that genomic profiling results could commonly differ between the primary and metastatic tumors. To evaluate genomic heterogeneity, we sequenced paired primary GEA and synchronous metastatic lesions across multiple cohorts, finding extensive differences in genomic alterations, including discrepancies in potentially clinically relevant alterations. Multiregion sequencing showed significant discrepancy within the primary tumor (PT) and between the PT and disseminated disease, with oncogene amplification profiles commonly discordant. In addition, a pilot analysis of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) sequencing demonstrated the feasibility of detecting genomic amplifications not detected in PT sampling. Lastly, we profiled paired primary tumors, metastatic tumors, and cfDNA from patients enrolled in the personalized antibodies for GEA (PANGEA) trial of targeted therapies in GEA and found that genomic biomarkers were recurrently discrepant between the PT and untreated metastases. Divergent primary and metastatic tissue profiling led to treatment reassignment in 32% (9/28) of patients. In discordant primary and metastatic lesions, we found 87.5% concordance for targetable alterations in metastatic tissue and cfDNA, suggesting the potential for cfDNA profiling to enhance selection of therapy.Significance: We demonstrate frequent baseline heterogeneity in targetable genomic alterations in GEA, indicating that current tissue sampling practices for biomarker testing do not effectively guide precision medicine in this disease and that routine profiling of metastatic lesions and/or cfDNA should be systematically evaluated. Cancer Discov; 8(1); 37-48. ©2017 AACR.See related commentary by Sundar and Tan, p. 14See related article by Janjigian et al., p. 49This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 1.

Blood collection in cell-stabilizing tubes does not impact germline DNA quality for pediatric patients.

OBJECTIVES: Liquid biopsy technologies allow non-invasive tumor profiling for patients with solid tumor malignancies by sequencing circulating tumor DNA. These studies may be useful in risk-stratification, monitoring for relapse, and understanding tumor evolution. The quality of DNA obtained for these studies is improved when blood samples are collected in tubes that stabilizing white blood cells (WBC). However, ongoing germline research in pediatric oncology generally requires obtaining blood samples in EDTA tubes, which do not contain a WBC-stabilizing preservative. In this study, we explored whether blood samples collected in WBC-stabilizing tubes could be used for both liquid biopsy and germline studies simultaneously, minimizing blood collection volumes for pediatric patients. METHODS: Blood was simultaneously collected from three patients in both EDTA and Streck Cell-Free DNA BCT® tubes. Germline DNA was extracted from all blood samples and subjected to whole-exome sequencing and microarray profiling. RESULTS: Quality control metrics of DNA quality, sequencing library preperation and whole-exome sequencing alignment were virtually identical regardless of the sample collection method. There was no discernable difference in patterns of variant calling for paired samples by either whole-exome sequencing or microarray analysis. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates that high-quality genomic studies may be performed from germline DNA obtained in Streck tubes. Therefore, these tubes may be used to simultaneously obtain samples for both liquid biopsy and germline studies in pediatric patients when the volume of blood available for research studies may be limited.