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Updated: Mar 25, 2026

Next Generation Sequencing for the Detection of Actionable Mutations in Solid and Liquid Tumors
Published on: September 20, 2016
Germline and Somatic DICER1 Mutations in a Well-Differentiated Fetal Adenocarcinoma of the Lung
Leanne de Kock1, Ismaël Bah2, Yingchen Wu3
1Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Lady Davis Institute, Segal Cancer Centre, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Abstract:
Germ-line DICER1 mutations predispose to a distinctive tumour predisposition syndrome, the DICER1 syndrome, which is associated with a spectrum of rare mainly childhood-onset tumours. In 2014, a case of well-differentiated fetal adenocarcinoma of the lung (WDFA) was reported in a 16-year-old germ-line DICER1 mutation carrier. Here we report our finding of a characteristic somatic DICER1 RNase IIIb c.5127T>A (p.Asp1709Glu) missense mutation within the WDFA, confirmed using laser capture microscopy. The child has a personal history consistent with the DICER1 syndrome: she developed a multinodular goitre at age 14 years and an ovarian Sertoli-Leydig cell tumour at age 16 years, each of which were found to harbour a somatic DICER1 RNase IIIb missense mutation. The identification of two DICER1 "hits" in the WDFA strongly suggests that WDFA is a rare, previously-unrecognised manifestation of DICER1 syndrome.
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