Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 4, 2025
In Vivo Inhibition of MicroRNA to Decrease Tumor Growth in Mice
Published on: August 23, 2019
Papillary thyroid carcinoma with a high tumor mutation burden has a poor prognosis
Zhenyu Xie1, Xin Li1, Yu Lun1
1Department of Vascular and Thyroid Surgery, The First Hospital, China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
Background:
Tumor mutation burden (TMB) as a prognostic marker for immunotherapy has shown prognostic value in many cancers. However, there is no systematic investigation on TMB in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).
Methods:
Based on the somatic mutation data of 487 PTC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), TMB was calculated, and we classified the samples into high-TMB (H-TMB) and low-TMB (L-TMB) groups. Bioinformatics methods were used to explore the characteristics and potential mechanism of TMB in PTC.
Results:
High TMB predicts shorter progression-free survival (PFS) (P < 0.001). TMB was positively correlated with age, stage, tumor size, metastasis, the male sex and tall cell PTC. Compared to the L-TMB group, the H-TMB group presented with lower immune cell infiltration, a higher proportion of tumor-promoting immune cells (M0 macrophages, activated dendritic cells and monocytes) and a lower proportion of antitumor immune cells (M1 macrophages, CD8+ T cells and B cells). Additionally, the characteristics displayed by different TMB groups were not driven by critical driver mutations such as BRAF and RAS.
Conclusions:
PTC patients with high TMB have a worse prognosis. By stratifying PTC patients according to their TMB, advanced PTC patients who are candidates for immunotherapy could be selected.
Related Concept Videos
02:07Tumor Progression
Colon cancer is one of the best-documented examples of tumor progression. Early mutation in the APC gene in colon cells causes a small growth on the colon wall called a polyp. With time, this polyp grows into a benign, pre-cancerous tumor. Further...
02:23Abnormal Proliferation
02:18Cancer
02:53Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
01:12Loss of Tumor Suppressor Gene Functions
When the tumor suppressor genes develop mutations or are lost, cells start growing out of control, leading to cancer. However, a single functional copy of the tumor suppressor gene is enough for the cells to maintain their normal functions and cell...
01:05Cancer-Critical Genes II: Tumor Suppressor Genes
When the function of certain critical genes, especially those involved in cell cycle regulation and cell growth signaling cascades, gets disrupted, it upsets the cell cycle progression. Such cells with unchecked cell cycles start proliferating uncontrollably and eventually develop into tumors.
Such genes that act...