Hematologic toxicity in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers during chemotherapy: A retrospective matched cohort study.

Women who inherit a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation have an increased risk of breast cancer. Preliminary evidence suggests they may also have defects in bone marrow function. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a multicenter, retrospective, matched cohort study, comparing women with localized breast cancer requiring cytotoxic chemotherapy who carried an inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation to similar wild-type patients treated between 1995 and 2017 and matched based on age, race, site, and chemotherapy regimen. The proportion who developed specific hematologic toxicities, timing of these toxicities, and patterns of blood count fluctuations over time were compared among BRCA1 carriers vs matched wild-type patients and among BRCA2 carriers vs matched wild-type patients. 88 BRCA1 carriers and 75 BRCA2 carriers were matched to 226 and 242 wild-type patients, respectively. The proportions and timing of experiencing any grade or grade 3/4 cytopenias during chemotherapy were not significantly different for BRCA1 carriers or BRCA2 carriers vs matched wild-type patients. Proportions requiring treatment modifications and time to first modification were also similar. Patterns of blood count fluctuations over time in mutation carriers mirrored those in wild-type patients overall and by the most common regimens. Women with an inherited mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2 experience similar frequency, severity, and timing of hematologic toxicities during curative intent breast cancer chemotherapy as matched wild-type patients. Our findings suggest that BRCA1 or BRCA2 haploinsufficiency is sufficient for adequate bone marrow reserve in the face of short-term repetitive hematopoietic stressors.

Clinical interpretation of pathogenic ATM and CHEK2 variants on multigene panel tests: navigating moderate risk.

Comprehensive genomic cancer risk assessment (GCRA) helps patients, family members, and providers make informed choices about cancer screening, surgical and chemotherapeutic risk reduction, and genetically targeted cancer therapies. The increasing availability of multigene panel tests for clinical applications allows testing of well-defined high-risk genes, as well as moderate-risk genes, for which the penetrance and spectrum of cancer risk are less well characterized. Moderate-risk genes are defined as genes that, when altered by a pathogenic variant, confer a 2 to fivefold relative risk of cancer. Two such genes included on many comprehensive cancer panels are the DNA repair genes ATM and CHEK2, best known for moderately increased risk of breast cancer development. However, the impact of screening and preventative interventions and spectrum of cancer risk beyond breast cancer associated with ATM and/or CHEK2 variants remain less well characterized. We convened a large, multidisciplinary, cross-sectional panel of GCRA clinicians to review challenging, peer-submitted cases of patients identified with ATM or CHEK2 variants. This paper summarizes the inter-professional case discussion and recommendations generated during the session, the level of concordance with respect to recommendations between the academic and community clinician participants for each case, and potential barriers to implementing recommended care in various practice settings.

Prognostic tumor sequencing panels frequently identify germ line variants associated with hereditary hematopoietic malignancies.

Next-generation sequencing (NGS)-based targeted gene capture panels are used to profile hematopoietic malignancies to guide prognostication and treatment decisions. Because these panels include genes associated with hereditary hematopoietic malignancies (HHMs), we hypothesized that these panels could identify pathogenic germ line variants in malignant cells, thereby identifying patients at risk for HHMs. In total, pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in ANKRD26, CEBPA, DDX41, ETV6, GATA2, RUNX1, or TP53 were identified in 74 (21%) of 360 patients. Germ line tissue was available for 24 patients with 25 pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants with variant allele frequencies >0.4. Six (24%) of these 25 variants were of germ line origin. Three DDX41 variants, 2 GATA2 variants, and a TP53 variant previously implicated in Li-Fraumeni syndrome were of germ line origin. No likely pathogenic/pathogenic germ line variants possessed variant allele frequencies <0.4. This study demonstrates that NGS-based prognostic panels may identify individuals at risk for HHMs despite not being designed for this purpose. Furthermore, variants known to cause Li-Fraumeni syndrome as well as known pathogenic variants in genes such as DDX41 and GATA2 are especially likely to be of germ line origin. Thus, tumor-based panels may augment, but should not replace, comprehensive germ line-based testing and counseling.

Old and new tools in the clinical diagnosis of inherited bone marrow failure syndromes.

Patients with inherited bone marrow failure syndromes (IBMFSs) classically present with specific patterns of cytopenias along with congenital anomalies and/or other physical features that are often recognizable early in life. However, increasing application of genomic sequencing and clinical awareness of subtle disease presentations have led to the recognition of IBMFS in pediatric and adult populations more frequently than previously realized, such as those with early onset myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Given the well-defined differences in clinical management needs and outcomes for aplastic anemia, acute myeloid leukemia, and MDS in patients with an IBMFS vs those occurring sporadically, as well as nonhematologic comorbidities in patients with IBMFSs, it is critical for hematologists to understand how to approach screening for the currently known IBMFSs. This review presents a practical approach for the clinical hematologist that outlines when to suspect an IBMFS and how to use various diagnostic tools, from physical examination to screening laboratory tests and genomics, for the diagnosis of the most frequent IBMFSs: Fanconi anemia, telomere biology disorders, Diamond-Blackfan anemia, GATA2 deficiency syndrome, Shwachman-Diamond syndrome, and severe congenital neutropenia.

Unique metastases of ALK mutated lung cancer activated to the adnexa of the uterus.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) fusion positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a relatively novel molecular subtype in lung cancer. ALK targeted therapies such as crizotinib increase survival benefit in this patient population. However, further understanding of the disease subtype including patterns of metastasis and pathways of treatment resistance are needed. We describe a 50 year-old-woman diagnosed with stage IV NSCLC, T2N3M1b, ALK fusion positive disease. Although her initial sites of metastasis included the liver and bone, her story is notable for crizotinib resistant growth of a metastatic lesion to her adnexa. This report brings to attention unique mechanisms of metastasis in ALK positive patients.

Familial myelodysplastic syndrome/acute leukemia syndromes: a review and utility for translational investigations.

The familial myelodysplastic (MDS)/acute leukemia (AL) predisposition syndromes are inherited disorders that lead to significantly increased lifetime risks of MDS and AL development. At present, four recognized syndromes have Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments--certified testing for their respective germ-line mutations: telomere biology disorders due to mutation of TERC or TERT, familial acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with mutated CEBPA, familial MDS/AML with mutated GATA2, and familial platelet disorder with propensity to myeloid malignancy. These disorders are heterogeneous with regard to their causative genetic mutations, clinical presentation, and progression to MDS/AL. However, as a group, they all share the unique requirement for a high index of clinical suspicion to allow appropriate genetic counseling, genetic testing, and mutation-specific clinical management. In addition, translational investigations of individuals and families with these syndromes provide a rare opportunity to understand key pathways underlying susceptibility and progression to MDS/AL and allow the possibility of novel strategies for the prevention and treatment of both familial and sporadic forms of MDS/AL.