Leukaemia and related blood cancers occur due to genetic changes that typically accumulate over many years. This study will employ targeted next-generation sequencing to retrace the preclinical evolution of several types of haematological malignancy. Investigating the progression of the earliest pre-malignant ancestral clones promises to offer valuable insights into early leukaemia evolution and therapeutic vulnerabilities of leukaemia stem cells.

Leukaemia and related blood cancers occur due to genetic changes that typically accumulate over many years. This study will employ targeted next-generation sequencing to retrace the preclinical evolution of several types of haematological malignancy. Investigating the progression of the earliest pre-malignant ancestral clones promises to offer valuable insights into early leukaemia evolution and therapeutic vulnerabilities of leukaemia stem cells.

Osteosarcoma, the most common primary malignant tumour of bone, affects children and adults alike. No fundamental biological differences between paediatric and adult osteosarcoma are known. Here, we apply multi-region whole genome sequencing to an index case of a four-year old child whose aggressive tumour harboured high level, focal amplifications of MYC and CCNE1 connected by translocations. We re-analysed copy number readouts of 258 cases of high-grade osteosarcoma from three different ... (Show More)

Osteosarcoma, the most common primary malignant tumour of bone, affects children and adults alike. No fundamental biological differences between paediatric and adult osteosarcoma are known. Here, we apply multi-region whole genome sequencing to an index case of a four-year old child whose aggressive tumour harboured high level, focal amplifications of MYC and CCNE1 connected by translocations. We re-analysed copy number readouts of 258 cases of high-grade osteosarcoma from three different cohorts and identified an additional three cases with MYC and CCNE1 co-amplification, confined to children and associated with aggressive disease. Examining the age distribution of MYC and CCNE1 amplicons across all cases revealed a significant enrichment ... (Read more)