Chronological improvement in precision oncology implementation in Japan

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Genomics
• Clinical Pathology

Background:

• Japan approved comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) for refractory cancer patients in June 2019.
• Molecular tumor boards (MTBs) are mandated for annotating all CGP test cases at designated hospitals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate improvements in precision oncology by comparing CGP outcomes between two periods.
• To assess the proportion of patients receiving matched treatments and genetic counseling referrals.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of CGP data from 11 hospitals (Period 1: June 2019-Jan 2020) and 12 hospitals (Period 2: Feb 2020-Jan 2021).
• Evaluation of matched treatment rates and genetic counseling recommendations based on CGP results.
• Comparison between tumor-only and tumor-normal paired CGP testing methods.

Main Results:

• Matched treatment rates increased from 3.7% to 7.7% (p < 0.001) between periods.
• Genetic counseling referrals rose from 3.3% to 10.3% (p < 0.001).
• Tumor-normal paired testing showed a higher matched treatment rate (10.0%) compared to tumor-only (3.5%) but lower genetic counseling referrals.

Conclusions:

• Networked MTBs recommending clinical trials may increase matched treatments.
• Tumor-normal paired CGP testing enhances the efficiency of patient referrals for genetic counseling compared to tumor-only tests.