Chromothripsis and progression-free survival in metastatic colorectal cancer

Metastatic dissemination of the primary tumor is the major cause of death in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. Multiple chromosomal breaks and chromothripsis, a phenomenon involving multiple chromosomal fragmentations occurring in a single catastrophic event, are associated with cancer genesis, progression and developing of metastases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of chromothripsis and total breakpoint count (breakpoint instability index) on progression-free survival (PFS). A total of 19 patients with metastatic CRC (mCRC) receiving FOLFOX first-line palliative chemotherapy between August, 2011 and October, 2012 were selected for this study. The results indicated that the highest breakpoint count was observed in chromosomes 1, 2 and 6. Chromothripsis was detected in 52.6% of the study patients. Furthermore, chromothripsis was associated with an increased median PFS (mPFS; 14 vs. 8 months, respectively; P=0.03), but an association with overall survival was not identified. The present study demonstrated that chromothripsis affected CRC patient survival, suggesting a role for this event as a prognostic and predictive marker in mCRC treatment.