Clinical sequencing of soft tissue and bone sarcomas delineates diverse genomic landscapes and potential therapeutic targets

Nat Commun. 2022 Jun 15;13(1):3405. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-30453-x.

Abstract

The genetic, biologic, and clinical heterogeneity of sarcomas poses a challenge for the identification of therapeutic targets, clinical research, and advancing patient care. Because there are > 100 sarcoma subtypes, in-depth genetic studies have focused on one or a few subtypes. Herein, we report a comparative genetic analysis of 2,138 sarcomas representing 45 pathological entities. This cohort is prospectively analyzed using targeted sequencing to characterize subtype-specific somatic alterations in targetable pathways, rates of whole genome doubling, mutational signatures, and subtype-agnostic genomic clusters. The most common alterations are in cell cycle control and TP53, receptor tyrosine kinases/PI3K/RAS, and epigenetic regulators. Subtype-specific associations include TERT amplification in intimal sarcoma and SWI/SNF alterations in uterine adenosarcoma. Tumor mutational burden, while low compared to other cancers, varies between and within subtypes. This resource will improve sarcoma models, motivate studies of subtype-specific alterations, and inform investigations of genetic factors and their correlations with treatment response.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Bone Neoplasms*
  • Genomics
  • Humans
  • Osteosarcoma*
  • Sarcoma* / drug therapy
  • Sarcoma* / therapy
  • Soft Tissue Neoplasms* / genetics