Researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and the Children’s Oncology Group have published a study revealing that genetic ancestry influences how gene mutations affect cancer prognosis in patients with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). The findings were published in the journal Blood Cancer Discovery.
The study indicates that changes in certain genes impact T-ALL differently based on genetic ancestry. This highlights the importance of personalized medicine in treating pediatric cancers like T-ALL. “Our research demonstrates it is essential to ensure the equitable implementation of genomic biomarkers in treatment decisions or we may introduce disparities,” said David T. Teachey, MD, a lead study author at CHOP.
The researchers analyzed data from 1,309 individuals enrolled in a clinical trial conducted by the Children’s Oncology Group between 2007 and 2014. They found that 80% had mutations where prognostic impact varied depending on their genetic ancestry. For instance, the NOTCH1 gene was linked to better survival among patients of European ancestry but not for those of African ancestry.
Charles Mullighan, MBBS (Hons), MSc, MD from St. Jude emphasized the significance of understanding how heritable and tumor-acquired genetic variations interact to influence leukemia’s features and behavior.
The study also evaluated tools used to categorize patients into risk groups. One method worked well across different ancestries, while another tool developed mainly from European data sometimes provided misleading results for non-European backgrounds.
“Our groups have a long-standing interest in how genetic ancestry affects cancer biology in children,” said Jun J. Yang, PhD from St. Jude Department of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Haley M. Newman, MD from CHOP stated that “the lessons learned from this work should be investigated in other types of cancer in children and adults.”
This research received support from various organizations including Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
For more information about CHOP and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, visit their respective websites.
