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Updated: Sep 28, 2025

Comparative Lesions Analysis Through a Targeted Sequencing Approach
Published on: November 5, 2019
All is not lost: learning from 9p21 loss in cancer
Pavlina Spiliopoulou1, S Y Cindy Yang1, Jeff P Bruce1
1Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Abstract:
The cancer research community continues to search for additional biomarkers of response and resistance to immune checkpoint treatment (ICT). The ultimate goal is to direct the use of ICT in patients whose tumors are most likely to benefit to achieve a refinement that is equivalent to that of a genotype-matched targeted treatment. Dissecting the mechanisms of ICT resistance can help us characterize ICT nonresponders more efficiently. In this opinion, we argue that there may be additional knowledge gained about immune evasion in cancer by analyzing the loss of the human 9p21.3 locus; as an example, we highlight findings of 9p21.3 loss from the investigator-initiated, pan-cancer INSPIRE study, in which patients were treated with pembrolizumab (anti-PD-1 antibody) ICT.
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