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Updated: Jul 19, 2026
05:39
Spontaneous Murine Model of Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer
Published on: February 3, 2023
Different structural components of conventional papillary thyroid carcinoma display mostly identical BRAF status
Alexander Abrosimov1, Vladimir Saenko, Tatiana Rogounovitch
1Department of International Health and Radiation Research, Atomic Bomb Disease Institute, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.
International Journal of Cancer
|October 18, 2006
Summary
The BRAF(T1799A) mutation is common in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). This study found BRAF mutations are generally consistent across different tumor structures, supporting reliable preoperative molecular diagnosis for PTC patients potentially benefiting from targeted therapy.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Molecular Pathology
- Genetics
Background:
- Activating BRAF(T1799A) mutation is a hallmark of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).
- BRAF mutations are prevalent in conventional, Warthin-like, and tall cell PTC variants, but scarce in the follicular variant.
- Conventional PTC often exhibits mixed architectures (papillary, follicular, solid), complicating BRAF mutational status assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence and distribution of BRAF(T1799A) mutations within distinct structural components of PTC.
- To assess the concordance of BRAF mutational status across different histological areas and in lymph node metastases.
- To evaluate the reliability of preoperative molecular diagnosis for PTC based on BRAF mutational status.
Main Methods:
- Microdissection of individual structural components from 44 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded PTC tissues.
- Analysis of BRAF(T1799A) mutation status in dissected tumor samples.
- Comparison of BRAF mutational patterns between primary tumor components and corresponding lymph node metastases.
Main Results:
- The BRAF(T1799A) mutation was detected in at least one structural component in 52% of PTC tumors.
- High concordance (93%) of BRAF mutational status was observed between different structural components within the same tumor.
- Identical BRAF mutational patterns were found in 92% of lymph node metastases compared to primary tumors.
Conclusions:
- The BRAF mutational status is largely homogeneous across distinct structural areas in conventional PTC.
- These findings support the reliability of preoperative molecular diagnosis for PTC, irrespective of biopsy site.
- Patients with BRAF mutation-positive PTC may be suitable candidates for targeted pharmacotherapy.
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