PURPOSE Cancer of unknown primary (CUP) is a metastatic disease with unidentifiable primary tumor. Somatic alterations can be assessed noninvasively via liquid biopsies interrogating cell-free DNA (cfDNA). METHODS We evaluated 1,931 patients with CUP with a cfDNA next-generation sequencing panel (73-74 genes). RESULTS Overall, 1,739 patients (90%) had ≥ 1 cfDNA alteration. We then explored alteration actionability (per the levels of evidence from the OncoKB database); 825 patients (47.4% of 1,739) had level 1, level 2, or resistance/R1 alterations. Among 40 clinically annotated patients with CUP who had cfDNA evaluated, higher degrees of matching treatment to alterations (Matching Score > 50% v ≤ 50%) was the only variable predicting improved outcome: longer median progression-free survival (10.4 v 2.5 months; P = .002), overall survival (13.4 v 5.7 months; P = .07, trend), and higher clinical benefit rate (stable disease ≥ 6 months/partial response/complete response; 83% v 25%; P = .003). CONCLUSION In summary, cfDNA frequently reveals strong level-of-evidence actionable alterations in CUP, and high degrees of matching to therapy correlates with better outcomes.
Carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) is a difficult‐to‐manage malignancy. Multi‐omic profiles and treatment outcome versus degree of precision matching was assessed. Tumors underwent next‐generation sequencing (NGS) [tissue and/or blood‐derived cell‐free DNA (cfDNA)]. Selected patients had transcriptome‐based immune profiling and/or programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD‐L1) immunohistochemistry analysis. Patients could be reviewed by a Molecular Tumor Board, but physicians chose the therapy. Of 6,497 patients in the precision database, 97 had CUP. The median number of pathogenic tissue genomic alterations was 4 (range 0–25) and, for cfDNA, was 2 (range 0–9). Each patient had a distinct molecular landscape. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)‐approved biomarkers included: PD‐L1+ ≥1%, 30.9% of CUPs tested; microsatellite instability, 3.6%; tumor mutational burden ≥10 mutations/mb, 23%; neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase (NTRK) fusions, 0%. RNA‐based immunograms showed theoretically druggable targets: lymphocyte activationgene 3 protein (LAG‐3), macrophage colony‐stimulating factor 1 receptor (CSF1R), adenosine receptor A2 (ADORA2) and indoleamine2,3‐dioxygenase 1 (IDO1). Overall, 56% of patients had ≥1 actionable biomarker (OncoKB database). To quantify the degree of matching (tumors to drugs), a matching score (MS) (roughly equivalent to number of alterations targeted/ total number of deleterious alterations) was calculated post hoc. Comparing evaluable treated patients [MS high, >50% (N=15) versus low ≤50% (N=47)], median progression‐free survival was 10.4 vs. 2.8 months (95% CI 0.11–0.64; HR 0.27; P=0.002); survival, 15.8 vs. 6.9 months (95% CI 0.17–1.16; HR 0.45; P=0.09); and clinical benefit rate (stable disease ≥6 months/partial/complete response), 71% vs. 24% (P=0.003). Higher MS was the only factor that predicted improvement in outcome variables after multivariate analysis. In conclusion, CUPs are molecularly complex. Treatments with high degrees of matching to molecular alterations (generally achieved by individualized combinations) correlated with improved outcomes.
Background: Alts in certain HR genes are associated with response to chemotherapy and PARP inhibitors. A comprehensive assessment of the distribution of alts in HR genes in a large pan-cancer data set could guide clinical management and trial design.Methods: Genomic profiling on up to 465 genes, including core and peripheral HR genes BRCA1,
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