Integrated Liquid Biopsy and Tumor Tissue Genomic Profiling of Appendiceal Cancer: cfDNA Burden, Mutation Landscapes,...

Appendiceal cancer (AC) is a rare malignancy that often presents at advanced stages with significant histological variability influencing clinical outcomes. Precise genomic profiling is essential for accurate diagnosis and personalized patient management. This study interrogated DNA from appendiceal tumor tissue, buffy coat cells, and the cell-free DNA component of plasma using a 523-gene panel for comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) to identify cancer-related genetic mutations in tumor and blood, evaluate tumor mutation burden, and determine genetic markers associated with histologic grade.

A total of 73 patients provided blood samples comprising cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and germline buffy coat cells (bcDNA) for analysis compared with tumor tissues available from 56 of these patients. Concordance of mutations between matched tumor tissue and plasma samples (n = 51) was assessed and tumor-specific and germline variants were classified using OncoKB™ clinical criteria to delineate oncogenic and therapeutically actionable variants [level 1 mutations with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved therapy]. Additionally, cfDNA concentrations were tested for association with clinical and pathologic features and oncologic outcome including disease-specific (DSS) and progression-free (PFS) survival.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) from plasma cell-free DNA demonstrated high concordance with tumor genomic profiling, reaching 98.4% concordance [median, interquartile range (IQR) 13.5, 21.5] overall and 85.7% (IQR 64.6, 100) for therapeutically actionable level 1 mutations. Prevalent appendiceal tumor-specific mutations included KRAS proto-oncogene, GTPase (KRAS) (41%), GNAS complex locus (GNAS) (30%), tumor protein p53 (TP53) (30%), and SMAD family member 4 (SMAD4) (29%). Tumor-specific TP53, SMAD4, and spectrin alpha, erythrocytic 1 (SPTA1) mutations strongly correlated with intermediate and high-grade histology, whereas GNAS mutations predominated in low-grade tumors. Germline analysis identified coding mutations shared among this patient cohort in notch receptor 4 (NOTCH4) (55%) and BRCA1 associated RING domain 1 (BARD1) (48%) genes, with zinc finger homeobox 3 (ZFHX3) (29%) and adhesion G protein-coupled receptor A2 (ADGRA2), DNA polymerase epsilon (POLE), and transcription factor 3 (TCF3) mutations (all = 23%) specifically enriched in intermediate and high-grade AC. Both histological grade and cfDNA stratified by concentration tertiles independently predicted progression-free and disease-specific survival. Plasma samples exhibited consistently lower variant allele frequencies than solid tumors, limiting sensitivity for discovery of novel mutations exclusively from plasma.

This study supports integrating comprehensive ctDNA assays into standard diagnostic and treatment pathways for AC using large gene panels. TP53, SMAD4, SPTA1, and GNAS mutations serve as prospective tumor-specific molecular classifiers for histological grade, while germline variants in NOTCH4 and BARD1 may further influence disease biology, with ZFHX3, ADGRA2, POLE, and TCF3 affecting grade stratification. Overall cfDNA concentration may serve as a potential prognostic biomarker in AC.