8213 results for "canc*"

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• Neoadjuvant immunotherapy leads to pathological responses in MMR proficient and MMR deficient early stage colon cancers

  PD-1 plus CTLA-4 blockade is highly effective in advanced-stage, mismatch repair (MMR)-deficient (dMMR) colorectal cancers, yet not in MMR-proficient (pMMR) tumors. We postulated a higher efficacy of neoadjuvant immunotherapy in early-stage colon cancers. In the exploratory NICHE study (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03026140), patients with dMMR or pMMR tumors received a single dose of ipilimumab and two doses of nivolumab before surgery, the pMMR group with or without celecoxib. The primary objective was safety and feasibility; 40 patients with 21 dMMR and 20 pMMR tumors were treated, and 3 patients received nivolumab monotherapy in the safety run-in. Treatment was well tolerated and all patients underwent radical resections without delays, meeting the primary endpoint. Of the patients who received ipilimumab + nivolumab (20 dMMR and 15 pMMR tumors), 35 were evaluable for efficacy and translational endpoints. Pathological response was observed in 20/20 (100%; 95% exact confidence interval (CI): 86–100%) dMMR tumors, with 19 major pathological responses (MPRs, ≤10% residual viable tumor) and 12 pathological complete responses. In pMMR tumors, 4/15 (27%; 95% exact CI: 8–55%) showed pathological responses, with 3 MPRs and 1 partial response. CD8+PD-1+ T cell infiltration was predictive of response in pMMR tumors. These data indicate that neoadjuvant immunotherapy may have the potential to become the standard of care for a defined group of colon cancer patients when validated in larger studies with at least 3 years of disease-free survival data.

  Study EGAS00001004160

• The role of the mammalian SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex in neuroendocrine prostate cancer

  We sought to determine the effects of SMARCA4 and SMARCA2 depletion in prostate cancer cell lines. We performed siRNA-mediated knock-down of SMARCA4 and SMARCA2 in an androgen-sensitive (LNCaP) cell line and in a castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC)-adenocarcinoma cell line (22Rv1) and compared global transcriptional alterations using RNA-seq.

  Study EGAS00001004177

• Targeted sequencing of breast cancers with germline BRCA1/2 mutations

  Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in women, where a germline predisposition plays a substantial role. However, the effects of pathogenic germline variants on accompanying breast cancers have not been fully characterized in terms of somatic alterations. We obtained tumor samples from 30 patients with pathogenic germline variants in BRCA2 (n = 25) and BRCA1 (n = 5), as well as an additional 30 patients without pathogenic germline mutations, in which somatic mutations in common breast cancer drivers and CNAs were analyzed using targeted panel sequencing.

  Study EGAS00001004182

• cfRRBS on cfDNA from pediatric cancer

  In the clinical management of pediatric solid tumors, histological examination of tumor tissue obtained by a biopsy remains the gold standard to establish a conclusive pathological diagnosis. The DNA methylation pattern of a tumor is known to correlate with the histopathological diagnosis across cancer types and is showing promise in the diagnostic workup of tumor samples. This methylation pattern can be detected in the cell-free DNA. Here, we provide proof-of-concept of histopathologic classification of pediatric tumors using cell-free reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (cf-RRBS) from retrospectively collected plasma and cerebrospinal fluid samples. We determined the correct tumor type in 49 out of 60 (81.6%) samples starting from minute amounts (less than 10 ng) of cell-free DNA. We demonstrate that the majority of misclassifications were associated with sample quality and not with the extent of disease. Our approach has the potential to help tackle some of the remaining diagnostic challenges in pediatric oncology in a cost-effective and minimally invasive manner.

  Study EGAS00001004194

• pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma exomes in study: Pro-immunogenic Impact of MEK inhibition combined with an anti-CD40 immunostimulatory antibody

  Cancer types with lower mutational load and a non-permissive tumor microenvironment are intrinsically resistant to immune checkpoint blockade. While the combination of cytostatic drugs and immunostimulatory antibodies constitutes an attractive concept for overcoming this refractoriness, suppression of immune cell function by cytostatic drugs may limit therapeutic efficacy. Here we show that targeted inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase (MEK) does not impair dendritic cell-mediated T-cell priming and activation. Accordingly, combining MEK inhibitors (MEKi) with agonist antibodies (Abs) targeting the immunostimulatory CD40 receptor resulted in potent synergistic anti-tumor efficacy. Detailed analysis of the mechanism of action of MEKi GDC-0623 by means of flow cytometric analysis of the tumor immune infiltrate and whole tumor transcriptomics showed that, in addition to its cytostatic impact on tumor cells, this drug exerts multiple pro-immunogenic effects, including the suppression of M2-type macrophages, myeloid derived suppressor cells and CD4+ T-regulatory cells. In addition, MEKi was found to induce tumor-cell intrinsic interferon signaling, which contributed to antigen presentation by tumor cells. Finally, the tumoridical impact of MEKi involves the activation of multiple pro-inflammatory pathways involved in immune cell effector function in the tumor microenvironment. Our data therefore indicate that the combination of MEK inhibition with agonist anti-CD40 Ab is a promising therapeutic concept, especially for the treatment of mutant Kras-driven tumors such as pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma exomes were generated in the context of the Heidelberg Center for Personalized Oncology project HIPO-K28E.

  Study EGAS00001004196

• Real-time response profiling through serial plasma analyses during FOLFOX treatment in patients with colorectal cancer

  Response evaluation of cancer therapeutics relies on the assessment of the change in tumor burden, which is performed in accordance with defined criteria every 8-12 weeks. However, predictive factors for response are not available for the majority of patients with advanced stage colorectal cancer. Here we show that measurement of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) levels during one of the most commonly administered drug regimens, i.e. FOLFOX, allows an early, real-time assessment of treatment response. During the 48-hour FOLFOX application, we serially assessed plasma DNA and observed that ctDNA levels initially decreased during the first 23 hours. In patients with stable disease or partial response, ctDNA levels remained low, whereas in patients with progressive disease, ctDNA levels increased at the end of the treatment cycle predicting clinical and radiologic response correctly. Hence, ctDNA monitoring during treatment may contribute to an early outcome prediction with significant implications for the management of patients.

  Study EGAS00001004213

• Heterogeneous Genomic Evolution and Immune Microenvironments in Metastatic Lung Cancer

  The mechanism underlying the occurrence of lung cancer metastasis to different tissues/organs remains elusive. We investigated the genomic evolution and immune microenvironments of paired primary-metastatic tumors by employing multi-region whole-exome sequencing in 179 samples of 106 tumors from 51 lung cancer patients and subsequent immunohistochemistry assays in 70 of them. Our data revealed differences in genomic landscapes, molecular determinants, evolutionary dynamics, and lymphocyte infiltration among different metastatic sites. We demonstrated commonly late arising of metastatic seeding of lung cancer with quantitative evidence. Most distant metastases originated from independent origins of earlier lymph node spreads. Immune-heterogeneity and -homogeneity were primarily driven by arm-level and focal copy number events in primary tumors, respectively. These findings implied the combinatorial role of multiple factors in shaping patterns of dissemination and advanced the clinical evaluation and intervention of lung cancer metastasis.

  Study EGAS00001004228

• NanoSring of PBMC from bladder cancer and RCC patients

  PBMCs from patients were isolated using 50 mL Leucosep™ tubes (Greiner Bio-One International, Germany) and Ficoll-Paque™ PLUS (GE Healthcare, Sweden). Whole blood drawn into sodium heparin blood collection tubes were diluted 3x with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) without calcium or magnesium (Lonza, Walkersville, MD). Diluted cell suspensions were carefully layered on Leucosep tubes and centrifuged for 15 minutes at 800 x g at room temperature (RT). Interphase containing PBMCs were harvested and washed with PBS and subsequently centrifuged for 10 minutes at 250 x g at RT before further processing.

  Study EGAS00001004229

• Single Cell RNAseq of blood and tumor from renal cancer patients

  Single-cell RNASeq (scRNAseq) showed that IL8 is primarily expressed in circulating and intratumoral myeloid cells and high IL8 expression was associated with the downregulation of the antigen presentation machinery in myeloid cells.

  Study EGAS00001004230

• Whole transcriptome sequencing of chemotherapy-resistant muscle-invasive urothelial bladder cancer

  All mRNA sequencing data were acquired from single patients (BC159T) at a different time (BC159-T#1, BC159-T#2, and BC159-T#3). The first transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TUR-BT) (BC159-T#1) was diagnosed with non-MIUBC (muscle-invasive urothelial bladder cancer). Despite of intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), the patient progressed into MIUBC at the second TUR-BT (BC159-T#2). After undergoing multiple neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimens (gemcitabine/paclitaxel and sequential paclitaxel), the patient developed local recurrence and multiple lung metastases and removed following palliative partial cystectomy (BC159-T#3).

  Study EGAS00001004232

• Single-cell RNA sequencing of chemotherapy-resistant muscle-invasive urothelial bladder cancer

  All single-cell mRNA sequencing data were acquired from a single patient (BC159-T#3) and patient-derived xenografts (BC159-T#3-PDX-vehicle and BC159-T#3-PDX-tipifarnib).

  Study EGAS00001004233

• The_Little_Princess_Knowledge_Bank_

  We propose to build a genetic knowledge bank of Wilms tumour that integrates clinical outcome data with a genetic, epigenetic, and transcriptomic survey of 1,000 Wilms tumours.

  Study EGAS00001004237

• HSC_population_dynamics___LEUK4_samples

  My research project aims to use the clonal dynamics of spontaneously occurring somatic mutations to answer fundamental questions about human haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) biology. The four major questions I will address are: 1. How do age and aging affect normal human HSC dynamics in vivo? 2. How do in vivo perturbations, particularly chemotherapy and increased levels of reactive oxygen species, affect HSC population dynamics? 3. Is response to in vitro perturbation heritable and/or correlated with other features such as age of individual and contribution of the lineage to peripheral blood? 4. How are HSC dynamics altered in people with early driver mutations (clonal haematopoiesis)?

  Study EGAS00001004247

• Whole-exome sequencing of ovarian clear cell carcinoma in clinical outliers

  Whole-exome sequencing dataset for the Australian Ovarian Cancer Study (AOCS) and The Jikei University School of Medicine (JIKEI) ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) clinical outliers project, representing 10 donors. Although OCCC are commonly resistant to platinum based chemotherapy, good clinical outcomes are observed in a subset of patients. Exome sequencing was performed in 10 patients who had either unusually long survival (N=5) or had a very short time to progression (N=5).

  Study EGAS00001004248

• Adult granulosa cell tumor WGS data cohort with corresponding reference germline WGS data

  Adult granulosa cell tumors (AGCTs) harbor a somatic FOXL2 c.402C>G mutation in ~95% of cases and are mainly surgically removed due to limited systemic treatment effect. In this study, potentially targetable genomic alterations in AGCTs were investigated by whole genome sequencing on 46 tumor samples and matched normal DNA. Copy number variant (CNV) analysis confirmed gain  of chromosome 12 and 14, and loss of 22. Pathogenic TP53 mutations were identified in three patients with highest tumor mutational burden and mitotic activity, defining a high-grade AGCT subgroup. Within-patient tumor comparisons showed 29-80% unique somatic mutations per sample, suggesting tumor heterogeneity. FOXL2-wildtype AGCTs had DICER1, TERT(C228T) and TP53 mutations and similar CNV profiles as FOXL2-mutant tumors. Our study confirms that absence of the FOXL2 c.402C>G mutation does not exclude AGCT diagnosis. The lack of overlapping variants in targetable cancer genes, indicates the need for personalized treatment for AGCT patients 

  Study EGAS00001004249

• The landscape of chromothripsis across adult cancer types

  Chromothripsis is a recently identified mutational phenomenon, by which a presumably single catastrophic event generates extensive genomic rearrangements of one or a few chromosome(s). Considered as an early event in tumour development, this form of genome instability plays a prominent role in tumour onset. Chromothripsis prevalence might have been underestimated when using low-resolution methods, and pan-cancer studies based on sequencing are rare. We analysed chromothripsis in 28 tumour types covering all major adult cancers (634 tumours, 316 whole-genome and 318 whole-exome sequences). We show that chromothripsis affects a substantial proportion of human cancers, with a prevalence of 49% across all cases. Chromothripsis generates entity-specific genomic alterations driving tumour development, including clinically relevant druggable fusions. Chromothripsis is linked with specific telomere patterns and univocal mutational signatures in distinct tumour entities. Longitudinal analysis of chromothriptic patterns in 24 matched tumour pairs reveals novel insights in the clonal evolution of tumours with chromothripsis. (H021)

  Study EGAS00001004250

• Longitudinal therapy monitoring of ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer (copy number, cell-free DNA)

  Clinical courses of non-small cell lung cancer patients with ALK rearrangements (ALK+ NSCLC) vary widely. We analyzed 271 longitudinal plasma samples from 73 patients with advanced ALK+ NSCLC treated with ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors by combined hybrid-capture-based targeted sequencing (average 4,100x coverage) for mutation analysis and shallow whole genome sequencing (0.5x coverage) for global copy number profiling from cfDNA.

  Study EGAS00001004276

• Coding and non-coding drivers of mantle cell lymphoma identified through exome and genome sequencing

  Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is an uncommon B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that is incurable with standard therapies. The genetic drivers of this cancer have not been firmly established and the features that contribute to differences in clinical course remain limited. To extend our understanding of the biological pathways involved in this malignancy, we performed a large-scale genomic analysis of MCL using data from 51 exomes and 34 genomes alongside previously published exome cohorts. To confirm our findings, we re-sequenced the genes identified in the exome cohort in 191 MCL tumors, each having clinical follow-up data. We confirmed the prognostic association of TP53 and NOTCH1 mutations. Our sequencing revealed novel recurrent non-coding mutations surrounding a single exon of the HNRNPH1 gene. In RNA-seq data from 103 of these cases, MCL tumors with these mutations had a distinct imbalance of HNRNPH1 isoforms. This altered splicing of HNRNPH1 was associated with inferior outcomes in MCL and showed a significant increase in protein expression by immunohistochemistry. We describe a functional role for these recurrent non-coding mutations in disrupting an auto-regulatory feedback mechanism, thereby deregulating HNRNPH1 protein expression. Taken together, these data strongly implicate a role for aberrant regulation of mRNA processing in MCL pathobiology.

  Study EGAS00001004289

• MethCORR: DNA Methylation-based Characterization, Classification and Prognostication of Colorectal Cancer using Archival Formalin-fixed, Paraffin-embedded Tissue

  Transcriptional characterization and classification has potential to resolve the inter-tumor heterogeneity of colorectal cancer (CRC) and improve patient management. Yet, robust transcriptional profiling is difficult using formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples, which complicates testing in clinical and archival material. We present MethCORR, an approach that allows uniform molecular characterization and classification of fresh-frozen and FFPE samples. MethCORR identifies genome-wide correlations between RNA expression and DNA methylation in fresh-frozen samples. This information is used to infer gene expression information in FFPE samples from their DNA methylation profiles. MethCORR was applied to methylation profiles from 877 fresh-frozen and FFPE samples and comparative analysis identified the same two major subtypes in four independent cohorts. Furthermore, subtype-specific prognostic biomarkers that better predicted relapse-free survival (HR=2.66, 95% CI [1.67-4.22], P<0.001) than TNM staging and MSI status were identified and validated using DNA methylation-specific PCR assays. The MethCORR approach is general, and may be similarly successful for other cancer types.

  Study EGAS00001004293

• PFA ependymoma cancer study

  Sequencing data related the PFA ependymoma study (Michealraj et al., Cell 2020), a lethal glial malignancy of the hindbrain found in babies and toddlers.

  Study EGAS00001004312

• Hereditary Cancer Diagnostics with I2HCP gene panel

  This dataset contains targetted DNA sequencing data generated in the context of genetic diagnostics of hereditary cancer. Target enrichment was performed with the I2HCP, a custom hereditary cancer gene panel based in Agilent SureSelect and developed by the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP, Badalona, Catalonia, Spain) and the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain). After the enrichment, 108 samples were sequenced in Illumina HiSeq machines and 130 in MiSeq machines. Some of the samples were sequenced on both platforms. The dataset also includes MLPA validation data for all identified copy-number alterations, annotated with exon resolution and information about negative MLPA results. All this data was generated in the context of routine diagnostics and compiled together with MPLA validation data for a genetic diagnostics oriented benchmark of germline CNV calling tools.

  Study EGAS00001004316

• METABRIC: Data from Batra et al (2021); DNA methylation landscapes of 1538 breast cancers reveal a replication-linked clock, epigenomic instability and cis-regulation

  DNA methylation is aberrant in cancer, but the dynamics, regulatory role and clinical implications of such epigenetic changes are still poorly understood. Here, RRBS-based profiles of 1538 breast tumors and 244 normal breast tissues from the METABRIC cohort are reported, facilitating detailed analysis of DNA methylation within a rich context of genomic, transcriptional, and clinical data. Tumor methylation from immune and stromal signatures are deconvoluted leading to the discovery of a tumor replication-linked clock with genome-wide methylation loss in non-CpG island sites. Unexpectedly, methylation in most tumor CpG islands follows two replication-independent processes of gain (MG) or loss (ML) that we term epigenomic instability. Epigenomic instability is correlated with tumor grade and stage, TP53 mutations and poorer prognosis. After controlling for these global trans-acting trends, as well as for X-linked dosage compensation effects, cis-specific methylation and expression correlations are uncovered at hundreds of promoters and over a thousand distal elements. Some of these targeted known tumor suppressors and oncogenes. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that global epigenetic instability can erode cancer methylomes and expose them to localized methylation aberrations in-cis resulting in transcriptional changes seen in tumors.

  Study EGAS00001004327

• Dissecting intratumor heterogeneity of nodal B cell lymphoma on the transcriptional, genetic, and drug response level

  Tumor heterogeneity encompasses both the malignant cells and their microenvironment. While heterogeneity between individual patients is well-known to affect the efficacy of anti-cancer, most personalized treatment approaches do not account for intratumor heterogeneity. We addressed this issue by studying the heterogeneity of lymph node-derived B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) by single cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) and transcriptome-informed flow cytometry. We identified transcriptionally distinct malignant subclones and compared their drug response and genomic profiles. Malignant subclones of the same patient responded strikingly different to anti-cancer drugs ex vivo, which recapitulated subclone-specific drug sensitivity during in vivo treatment. Tumor infiltrating T cells represented the majority of non-malignant cells, whose gene expression signatures were similar across all donors, whereas the frequencies of T cell subsets varied significantly between the donors. Our data provide new insights into the heterogeneity of B-NHL and highlight the relevance of intratumor heterogeneity for personalized cancer therapies.

  Study EGAS00001004335

• Comprehensive molecular characterization of brainstem glioma

  Brainstem gliomas are the most devastating and lethal tumors. Survival rates are among the lowest in all cancers and options for intervention are likewise low. Due to anatomical delicacy of these areas, resection of tumors is particularly difficult and attempted resections have high perioperative mortality rates. Genomic and epigenetic studies often provide a gateway to functional studies of specific classifications of tumors that can lead to major breakthroughs in diagnosis and treatment options.

  Study EGAS00001004341

• Molecular determinants of response to PD-L1 blockade across tumor types

  Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis lead to durable clinical responses in subsets of cancer patients across multiple indications, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), urothelial carcinoma (UC) and renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Herein, we complement PD-L1 immunohistochemistry (IHC) and tumor mutation burden (TMB) with RNA-seq in 366 patients to identify unifying and indication-specific molecular profiles that can predict response to checkpoint blockade across these tumor types. Multiple machine learning approaches failed to identify a baseline transcriptional signature highly predictive of response across these indications. Signatures described previously for immune checkpoint inhibitors also failed to validate. At the pathway level, significant heterogeneity was observed between indications, in particular within the PD-L1+ tumors. mUC and NSCLC were molecularly aligned, with cell cycle and DNA damage repair genes associated with response in PD-L1- tumors. At the gene level, the CDK4/6 inhibitor CDKN2A was identified as a significant transcriptional correlate of response, highlighting the association of non-immune pathways to the outcome of checkpoint blockade. This cross-indication analysis revealed molecular heterogeneity between mUC, NSCLC and RCC tumors, suggesting that indication-specific molecular approaches should be prioritized to formulate treatment strategies.

  Study EGAS00001004343

• Epigenomic profile of diverse cancer

  Epigenomic profile of diverse cancer.

  Study EGAS00001004352

• Molecular subsets in renal cancer determine outcome to checkpoint and angiogenesis blockade

  We conducted integrated multi-omics evaluation of 823 tumors from advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients and identified molecular subsets associated with differential clinical outcomes to angiogenesis blockade alone or with a checkpoint inhibitor. Unsupervised transcriptomic analysis revealed six molecular subsets with distinct angiogenesis, immune, cell cycle, metabolism, and stromal programs. While sunitinib was effective in subsets with high angiogenesis, atezolizumab+bevacizumab improved clinical benefit in tumors with high T-effector and/or cell cycle transcription. Somatic mutations in PBRM1 and KDM5C associated with high angiogenesis and AMPK/Fatty acid oxidation gene expression, while CDKN2A/B and TP53 alterations were more prevalent in tumors with increased cell cycle and anabolic metabolism. Sarcomatoid tumors exhibited low prevalence of PBRM1 mutations and angiogenesis markers, frequent CDKN2A/B, BAP1 and TP53 alterations, and increased PD-L1 expression. These findings can be applied to molecularly stratify advanced RCC patients, explain improved outcomes of sarcomatoid tumors to checkpoint blockade, and develop personalized therapies.

  Study EGAS00001004353

• Phylogenetic reconstruction of breast cancer

  The aim of this study was to identify the evolutionary trajectories of metastatic breast cancer. We present whole genome sequencing data (primary tumours, axillary lymph nodes, distant metastasis and matched normal tissues) from 16 breast cancer patients. This work sheds light on the routes on which tumour cells metastasize and their role in disease progression in ER-positive breast cancer.

  Study EGAS00001004356

• RNA-sequencing of Non-muscle Invasive Bladder cancer (NMIBC)

  This RNA-sequencing cohort includes 78 Non-muscle Invasive Bladder cancer (NMIBC) samples and 7 Muscle Invasive Bladder cancer (MIBC) samples.

  Study EGAS00001004358

• Sequencing of an adolescent patient with germline RET mutant alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma

  An adolescent patient presented with an alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma made more unique by the presence of a germline RET mutation ordinarily associated with and a known driver of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A (MEN2A) cancer. To better understand the role of this germline RET mutation in the genetics and phenotypic response of this unique alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, we performed DNA and RNA sequencing of the patients in addition to functional studies on patient-derived cultures and genetically similar similar cell models.

  Study EGAS00001004359

• TP53 variant detection analysis in high grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer

  The aim of this study was to detect in the DNA purified from PAP test samples collected years before the diagnosis of high grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer the presence of the clonal pathogenic TP53 variant identified in the matched primary tumor biopsy. In this specific part of the study, we analyzed FFPE tumor samples to identify clonal pathogenic variants to be tested in matched PAP tests.

  Study EGAS00001004361

• Epigenetic analyses of methylation and nucleosome occupancy in cell-free DNA (cfNOMe)

  Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has become essential in cancer diagnostics and prenatal testing. We investigate enzymatic cytosine conversion for epigenetic analyses of cfDNA and find that it reliably measures cytosine methylation and nucleosome occupancy. Whereas previously, separate experiments had to be performed to study either epigenetic marking, this approach delivers reliable results for both, enabling more comprehensive and inexpensive epigenetic profiling of cfDNA.

  Study EGAS00001004370

• Feasibility and safety of a multi-cancer blood test for screening and intervention

  We evaluated the feasibility and safety of blood testing for cancer in an interventional study of 10,006 women. Positive tests for DNA or protein were independently confirmed and diagnostic PET-CT imaging was used to localize disease. During the study, 26 cancers were first detected by blood testing, 24 more by standard-of-care screening, and 46 by neither approach. Surgicalexcision of the primary tumors was performed on 12 cancers first detected by blood testing.1.0% of participants underwent PET-CT imaging based on false positive blood tests, and 0.22% underwent a futile invasive diagnostic procedure. These data demonstrate that multi-cancer blood testing, when followed by PET-CT localization, can be safely incorporated into routineclinical care, in some cases leading to surgery with intent to cure. Further studies will be required to determine the clinical validity and utility of multi-cancer blood testing.

  Study EGAS00001004372

• Sensitive detection of tumor mutations from blood and its application to immunotherapy prognosis

  Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is attractive for many applications, including cancer detection, locating, and monitoring. A fundamental task underlying these applications is the SNV calling from cfDNA, which, however, faces a new challenge, namely, the generally very low tumor content in cfDNA. Thus all existing callers fail to achieve satisfactory performance. Here we present cfSNV, a method incorporating multi-layer error suppression and hierarchical mutation calling, to address this important challenge. Furthermore, by leveraging cfDNA’s comprehensive coverage of clonal landscape, for the first time cfSNV can profile mutations even in subclones. In both simulated and real patient data, cfSNV vastly outperforms existing tools, showing tens of times increase in sensitivity in detecting mutations with low allele frequency while maintaining high precision. cfSNV can enhance the clinical utilities of cfDNA by dramatically reducing the required sequencing depth and therefore reduce the cost by magnitudes, and further make the Whole-Exome-Sequencing of cfDNA a viable option. As an example, we demonstrate that cfDNA-WES allows a new biomarker to effectively select patients for immunotherapy.

  Study EGAS00001004373

• Whole genome sequencing of glioblastoma reveals enrichment of non-coding constraint mutations in known and novel genes

  Glioblastoma (GBM) has one of the worst five-year survival rates of all cancers. While genomic studies of the disease have been performed, alterations in the non-coding regulatory regions of GBM have largely remained unexplored. We apply whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to identify non-coding mutations, with regulatory potential in GBM, under the hypothesis that regions of evolutionary constraint are likely to be functional, and somatic mutations are likely more damaging than in unconstrained regions.

  Study EGAS00001004379

• Accurate mapping of mitochondrial DNA deletions and duplications using deep sequencing

  Deletions and duplications in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) cause mitochondrial disease and accumulate in conditions such as cancer and age-related disorders, but validated high-throughput methodology that can readily detect and discriminate between these two types of events is lacking. Here we present MitoSAlt, a computational method for accurate identification, quantification and visualization of mtDNA deletions and duplications from whole genome, whole exome or transcriptome sequencing data. MitoSAlt was tested on simulated sequencing reads and human patient samples with single deletions and duplications to verify its accuracy. Application to mouse models of mtDNA maintenance disease further demonstrated the ability to detect deletions and duplications even at low levels of heteroplasmy. MitoSAlt paves the way for simple and reliable determination of mtDNA deletions and duplications across a wide range of relevant conditions and available sequencing datasets.  

  Study EGAS00001004380

• Matching of actionable mutations with therapies in cancer patients: comparison of three commercial decision support platforms

  Purpose: In oncology, precision medicine centers on tailoring the most appropriate therapy to a patient according to their tumor molecular profile. We addressed the question whether there is a consensus in the classification of actionability of somatic variants and their alignment to treatment recommendations. To this end, we evaluated three commercial clinical decision support tools to assess their variant classification and drug matching strategies.Methods: In this two centers study 48 patients with metastatic breast (n=12), colorectal (n=17) or non-small cell lung cancer (n=19) were recruited based on circulating tumor DNA levels in peripheral blood. In individual patients’ plasma samples, we established somatic copy number alterations and somatic mutations across a 77 cancer-associated gene panel and exposed the obtained molecular profiles to the decision support packages NAVIFY Mutation Profiler (NMP; Roche), Qiagen Clinical Insight (QCI) Interpret (Qiagen) and CureMatch Bionov (CureMatch).Results: In the plasma samples, altogether 492 somatic alterations were assessed. Each decision support platform varied in their format of data input, mode of variant classification and strategies for identifying druggable targets and clinical trials, which resulted in discrepancies in tier classification as well as designations of actionability. The frequency of concordant actionable events for tier I-A or tier I-B classifications, i.e. those with the strongest clinical evidence, was only 4.3%, 9.5% and 28.4% when comparing NMP with QCI, NMP with CureMatch, and CureMatch with QCI, respectively. As a consequence, the obtained treatment recommendations differed drastically, and alignment of treatment recommendations was limited to established predictive markers.Conclusions: The lack of standards for the extraction of treatment recommendations from comprehensive tumor molecular profiling data challenge the promising concepts of precision oncology.

  Study EGAS00001004383

• Bulk RNAseq gene expression of baseline tumors from metastatic urothelial bladder cancer patients (IMvigor210) and metastatic renal cell carcinoma (IMmotion150)

  We examined tumors from a large cohort of patients with metastatic urothelial bladder cancer (mUC) and metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) treated with an anti-PD-L1 agent (atezolizumab) and found that high tumor IL8 gene expression was associated with worse overall survival (OS). We further identified the tumoral immune presence based on Teff signature. We found that high tumor IL8 expression continued to be associated with worse OS even in inflamed tumors in mUC and mRCC.

  Study EGAS00001004386

• Subtype specific studies of breast cancer progression. Milan cohort.

  The aim of this study is to compare DCIS and IBC in a subtype stratified manner in several genomic levels (gene expression, copy number, methylation).The data in this archive is supplementary to previously published data.

  Study EGAS00001004390

• Genomic study of an AT-AML

  Ataxia Telangiectasia (A-T) is caused by biallelic mutations in ATM and confers predisposition to cancer, with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) being rarely observed. We investigated an AML arising in an A-T patient for secondary genetic events by performing whole exome sequencing of serial samples over the disease course. AML samples were compared to a reference "germline" sample from a much earlier time point. Goldgraben et al 2020, Pediatric Blood & Cancer

  Study EGAS00001004392

• Homologous recombination DNA repair deficiency and PARP inhibition activity in primary triple negative breast cancer

  Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) encompasses molecularly different subgroups, with a subgroup harboring evidence of defective homologous recombination (HR) DNA repair. Within a phase 2 window clinical trial, RIO trial (EudraCT 2014-003319-12), we investigate the activity of PARP inhibitors in 43 patients with untreated TNBC. The primary endpoint, decreased Ki67, occurs in 12% of TNBC. Multiple different approaches identify HR deficiency in the majority of TNBC, 69% with the mutational-signature-based HRDetect assay. Cancers with mutational signatures of HR deficiency have a functional defect in HR. Following rucaparib treatment there is no association of Ki67 change with HR deficiency. In contrast, early circulating tumor DNA dynamics identify activity of rucaparib in cancers with mutation-signatures of HR deficiency, with rucaparib inducing expression of interferon response genes in HR deficient cancers. The majority of TNBCs have a defect in DNA repair, identifiable by mutational signature analysis, that may be targetable with PARP inhibitors.

  Study EGAS00001004405

• Genome-wide cell-free DNA mutational integration enables ultra-sensitive cancer monitoring

  In many areas of oncology, we lack sensitive tools to track low burden disease. While cell-free DNA (cfDNA) shows promise in detecting cancer mutations, we found that the combination of low tumor fraction (TF) and limited number of DNA fragments restricts low disease burden monitoring through the prevailing deep targeted sequencing paradigm. We reasoned that breadth may supplant depth of sequencing to overcome the barrier of cfDNA abundance. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) of cfDNA allowed ultra-sensitive detection, capitalizing on the cumulative signal of thousands of somatic mutations observed in solid malignancies, with TF detection sensitivity as low as 10-5. The WGS approach enabled dynamic tumor burden tracking and post-operative residual disease detection, associated with adverse outcome. Thus, we present an orthogonal framework for cfDNA cancer monitoring via genome wide mutational integration, enabling ultra-sensitive detection, overcoming the limitation of cfDNA abundance, and empowering treatment optimization in low-disease burden oncology care

  Study EGAS00001004406

• Scottish High Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer

  Scottish HGSOC samples were collected via local Bioresource facilities at Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen and stored in liquid Nitrogen until required. HGSOC patients were determined from pathology records and were included in the study where there was matched tumour and whole blood samples. On receipt of tumour material the tumour was processed as follows: firstly, the tumour sample was divided into two for DNA and RNA extraction. Slivers of tissue were cut from the front and rear faces of the DNA sample, then fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin wax. Sections from the front and rear tissues from all samples were examined by H&E staining supplemented by WT1/p53 immunohistochemistry if required. Following pathology review, samples were only included if they met the following criteria: they were confirmed as HGSOC and there was greater than 40% tumour cellularity throughout the tumour, determined using the H&E sections. Somatic DNA was extracted using the Qiagen DNeasy Blood and tissue kit (cat no 69504). The tissue was initially homogenised using a Qiagen Bioruptor, followed by the manufacturers recommended protocol (including RNase digestion step). Germline DNA was extracted from 1-3ml whole blood using the Qiagen FlexiGene kit (cat no 51206) following the manufacturers recommended protocol. The resulting DNA underwent quality control as follows: firstly, A260 and A280nm were measured on a Denovix DS-11 Fx to qualitatively illustrate A260/280nm and A260/230nm ratios as surrogate measures of DNA purity. A260/280 had to be 1.8 or greater and A260/230 had to be 2.0 or greater. Then, DNA was quantified using LifeTechnologies Qubit dsDNA BR kit (cat no Q32850) and we required a minimum of 50ul at 25ng/ul for WGS. Thirdly, DNA was diluted to 25ng/ul and a representative sample was loaded onto a 0.8% TAE gel, ran at 100v for 60mins and then imaged using a BioRad ChemiDoc imaging system to visualise the DNA quality. Only when all 4 quality control requirements were satisfied was the DNA sequenced. The DNA was sequenced at the Glasgow Precision Oncology Laboratories.

  Study EGAS00001004410

• Personalised Mapping of Tumour Development in Synchronous Colorectal Cancer Patients

  We performed an in-depth characterisation of 12 tumours from 3 syCRC patients by analysing histopathological, whole genome sequencing and RNA-sequencing data. We assessed the extent of genetic overlap between synchronous tumours and examined associations between clinicopathological information and the molecular, microbial and immune features of each tumour genome.

  Study EGAS00001004413

• Single-cell RNA-sequencing reveals that glioblastoma recapitulates a normal neurodevetlopmental hierarchy

  We discovered a conserved neural tri- lineage cancer hierarchy centered around glial progenitor-like cells. We also found that this progenitor population contains the majority of the cancer’s cycling cells, and, using RNA velocity, is often the originator of the other cell types. Finally, we show that this hierarchal map can be used to identify therapeutic targets specific to progenitor cancer stem cells. Our analyses show that normal brain development reconciles glioblastoma development, suggests a possible origin for glioblastoma hierarchy, and helps to identify cancer stem cell-specific targets.

  Study EGAS00001004422

• Dual-mTOR inhibitor Rapalink-1 reduces prostate cancer patient-derived xenograft growth and alters tumor heterogeneity

  Bone metastasis is the leading cause of prostate cancer (PCa) mortality, frequently marking the progression to castration-resistant PCa. In this study, we compared the molecular pathways enriched in a set of bone metastasis from breast and prostate cancer from snap-frozen tissue. To further model PCa drug resistance mechanisms, we used two patient-derived xenografts (PDX) models of bone-metastatic PCa, BM18 and LAPC9.

  Study EGAS00001004431

• Immunogenomics of colorectal cancer response to immune checkpoint blockade

  Molecular and cellular determinants of response to immune checkpoint inhibitors are mostly unknown. Here we use whole exome, RNA and T cell receptor sequencing, imaging mass cytometry, immunohistochemistry and PD1-PDL1 interaction detection to profile 543 regions from 16 colorectal cancers (CRCs) subsequently treated with Pembrolizumab or Nivolumab. Independent of treatment response, CRCs express low levels of PD1 and PDL1 proteins and form less PD1-PDL1 complex than other cancers. Non hypermutated CRCs have no benefit from treatment, show WNT activation and low T cell infiltrates. Among hypermutated CRCs, those with durable benefit have clonal immunogenic alterations, clonally expanded T cells and potential for immune escape through dysfunctional antigen presentation. Responsive tumours are enriched in PD1-expressing cytotoxic and proliferating CD8 T cells and PDL1-expressing antigen presenting macrophages, which form high-density clusters of interacting cells. Our study shows that immune checkpoint inhibitors are most effective in highly infiltrated CRCs where they may release the interactions between macrophages and CD8 T cells thus promoting their priming and expansion in intra-tumour niches.

  Study EGAS00001004438

• Patient-derived organoids as a novel tool to study cervical cancer

  Cervical cancer is the most prevalent gynecological malignancy worldwide, often caused by infection with a high-risk human papillomavirus. Currently, there are only limited number of human-derived culture systems available that enable to study the viral infection for short-term. Here, we report on establishment of long-term human-derived organoid cultures from both healthy ecto- and endocervical epithelia that closely recapitulate the tissues of origin by maintaining the authentic histological and tissue-specific gene expression profiles. Additionally, using material from patients’ Pap-brush material, a successful panel of long-term patient-derived cancer organoids was established that maintain the causative viral infection in vitro and show differential response to common chemotherapy regimens. This study provides a promising platform for cervical cancer research and studying direct virus-host interactions.

  Study EGAS00001004439

• Single-cell analysis for metastatic gastric adenocarcinoma

  Intra-tumoral heterogeneity (ITH) is the fundamental property of cancer, however, the origins of ITH remain poorly understood. Here we performed single-cell RNA sequencing of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) from patients with advanced gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC), constructed a transcriptome map of 45,048 PC cells, profiled the transcriptome states of diverse tumor cell lineages and types, incisively explored ITH of PC tumor cells, and identified significant correlates with patient survival.

  Study EGAS00001004443

• Immunogenomic landscape of hematological malignancies

  We integrated over 8,000 transcriptomes and over 2,000 samples with multilevel genomic data of hematological cancers to investigate how immunological features are linked to cancer subtypes, genetic and epigenetic alterations, and patient survival. For more detailed follow-up analyses in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), single-cell RNA sequencing was performed on 8 AML bone marrow samples at diagnosis to profile the phenotypes of blasts and infiltrating immune cells in different disease subtypes.

  Study EGAS00001004444