Impact of mismatch repair (MMR) testing on colorectal cancer (CRC) oncology clinical practice.

Authors

null

Madeleine Hewish

The Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom

Madeleine Hewish , Gordon Stamp , Loretto Puckey , Susan Shanley , Clare Costello , Janine Webb , Sanna Hulkki Wilson , David Gonzalez de Castro , Yolanda Barbachano , Claire Saffery , Charles Swanton , Christopher J. Lord , Jorge S. Reis-Filho , Alan Ashworth , Ian Chau , David Cunningham

Organizations

The Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom, Royal Marsden Hospitals NHS Trust London and Surrey, London and Surrey, United Kingdom, Royal Marsden Hospitals London and Surrey, London and Surrey, United Kingdom, The Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton, United Kingdom, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom, The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom, Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom, The Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, United Kingdom, The Royal Marsden Hospital, Sutton, United Kingdom

Research Funding

No funding sources reported

Background: MMR deficiency (dMMR) has been reported in 15% of CRC, but with a lower frequency in advanced disease. Most cases are due to sporadic MLH1 promoter hypermethylation (often with BRAF mutations), with a minority reflecting germline mutations in MLH1, MSH2, PMS2, or MSH6 (Lynch Syndrome [LS]). The Revised Bethesda Guidelines (RBG) are one means of selecting individuals at risk of LS for further assessment, but will miss a proportion of cases. Methods: We screened all consenting patients for eligibility for CRC trials recruiting specific genetic aberrations, which included MMR assessment. Results: Of 314 patients, immunohistochemistry (IHC) for MMR protein expression is complete on 171. Staining was reduced/absent in 19.3% of tests, and heterogeneous in 12.1%. The dMMR rate was 6.4%. 2 dMMR patients* were identified as at risk of LS, and referred to genetics by their treating clinician before IHC results were known. However 4 other cases† were not referred, and an underlying predisposition would have been missed without this unbiased approach. 4 patients developed metastatic disease, with none experiencing a partial response to chemotherapy thus far. (Table.) Conclusions: This data is representative of a practice with a high proportion of metastatic disease. It suggests that within oncology, an unbiased screening approach for LS is preferable. Whilst the RBG detect the majority of cases, they may be underutilised as other management issues take precedence in oncology clinics. A cost-effective alternative may be the introduction of a nurse-led programme to identify cases at risk, as is being introduced at our centre. A spectrum of clinical behavior exists amongst metastatic dMMR CRC, and larger numbers will reveal if this affects therapeutic response.


Age IHC deficit BRAF V600E
mutation
Stage at
presentation
Metastatic
disease
Mutation
identified

61 MLH1/PMS2 + T3N2 Retroperitoneum n/a
66 MLH1/PMS2 + Metastatic Retroperitoneum
Peritoneum
Nodes
n/a
53 MLH1/PMS2 + T4N1 n/a
77 MLH1/PMS2 + T3N1 n/a
74 MLH1/PMS2 + T3N2 n/a
61† MLH1/PMS2 n T3N0
52† MSH2/MSH6 n T3N0
53† MSH2/MSH6 n T3N1 Liver
Nodes
61† MSH2/MSH6 n T3N1 None
66* MSH2/MSH6 n T3N0 Liver
Rectum
Abdominal wall
MSH2
43* MSH6 n T3N0 MSH6

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Abstract Details

Meeting

2012 Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium

Session Type

Poster Session

Session Title

General Poster Session C: Cancers of the Colon and Rectum

Track

Cancers of the Colon, Rectum, and Anus

Sub Track

Multidisciplinary Treatment

Citation

J Clin Oncol 30, 2012 (suppl 4; abstr 603)

DOI

10.1200/jco.2012.30.4_suppl.603

Abstract #

603

Poster Bd #

E34

Abstract Disclosures