Rare Epithelial Ovarian Cancers: Low Grade Serous and Mucinous Carcinomas.

The ovarian epithelial cancer histotypes can be divided into common and rare types. Common types include high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas and the endometriosis-associated cancers, endometrioid and clear-cell carcinomas. The less common histotypes are mucinous and low-grade serous, each comprising less than 10% of all epithelial carcinomas. Although histologically and epidemiologically distinct from each other, these histotypes share some genetic and natural history features that distinguish them from the more common types. In this review, we will consider the similarities and differences of these rare histological types, and the clinical challenges they pose.

Molecular characterization of low-grade serous ovarian carcinoma identifies genomic aberrations according to hormone receptor expression.

Hormone receptor expression is a characteristic of low-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (LGSOC). Studies investigating estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) expression levels suggest its prognostic and predictive significance, although their associations with key molecular aberrations are not well understood. As such, we sought to describe the specific genomic profiles associated with different ER/PR expression patterns and survival outcomes in a cohort of patients with advanced disease. The study comprised fifty-five advanced-staged (III/IV) LGSOCs from the Canadian Ovarian Experimental Unified Resource (COEUR) for which targeted mutation sequencing, copy-number aberration, clinical and follow-up data were available. ER, PR, and p16 expression were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Tumors were divided into low and high ER/PR expression groups based on Allred scoring. Copy number analysis revealed that PR-low tumors (Allred score <2) had a higher fraction of the genome altered by copy number changes compared to PR-high tumors (p = 0.001), with cancer genes affected within specific loci linked to altered peptidyl-tyrosine kinase, MAP-kinase, and PI3-kinase signaling. Cox regression analysis showed that ER-high (p = 0.02), PR-high (p = 0.03), stage III disease (p = 0.02), low residual disease burden (p = 0.01) and normal p16 expression (p<0.001) were all significantly associated with improved overall survival. This study provides evidence that genomic aberrations are linked to ER/PR expression in primary LGSOC.

Genomic analysis of low-grade serous ovarian carcinoma to identify key drivers and therapeutic vulnerabilities.

Low-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (LGSOC) is associated with a poor response to existing chemotherapy, highlighting the need to perform comprehensive genomic analysis and identify new therapeutic vulnerabilities. The data presented here represent the largest genetic study of LGSOCs to date (n = 71), analysing 127 candidate genes derived from whole exome sequencing cohorts to generate mutation and copy-number variation data. Additionally, immunohistochemistry was performed on our LGSOC cohort assessing oestrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, TP53, and CDKN2A status. Targeted sequencing identified 47% of cases with mutations in key RAS/RAF pathway genes (KRAS, BRAF, and NRAS), as well as mutations in putative novel driver genes including USP9X (27%), MACF1 (11%), ARID1A (9%), NF2 (4%), DOT1L (6%), and ASH1L (4%). Immunohistochemistry evaluation revealed frequent oestrogen/progesterone receptor positivity (85%), along with CDKN2A protein loss (10%) and CDKN2A protein overexpression (6%), which were linked to shorter disease outcomes. Indeed, 90% of LGSOC samples harboured at least one potentially actionable alteration, which in 19/71 (27%) cases were predictive of clinical benefit from a standard treatment, either in another cancer's indication or in LGSOC specifically. In addition, we validated ubiquitin-specific protease 9X (USP9X), which is a chromosome X-linked substrate-specific deubiquitinase and tumour suppressor, as a relevant therapeutic target for LGSOC. Our comprehensive genomic study highlighted that there is an addiction to a limited number of unique 'driver' aberrations that could be translated into improved therapeutic paths. © 2020 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.