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Published on: July 25, 2020
Endometrial Cancer by ERBB2 Amplification (ERBB2amp) Status: Differences in Molecular Subtypes, Ancestry, and
Evelyn Cantillo1, Vivek Podder2, Natalie Danziger3
1Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY.
Purpose:
Endometrial cancer (EC) has rising mortality rates and persistent racial disparities, particularly among non-Hispanic Black women who are more likely to present with aggressive histologic subtypes associated with worse survival. ERBB2 amplification (ERBB2amp), a biomarker enriched in aggressive EC subtypes, is a therapeutic target. This study investigates ERBB2amp prevalence, molecular subtype, and histologic associations, as well as prognostic impact across diverse genetic ancestries using a large clinicogenomic database (CGDB).
Methods:
We analyzed 16,073 patients with EC who underwent tissue comprehensive genomic profiling via Foundation Medicine. Genetic ancestry was inferred using a single nucleotide polymorphism-based classifier. An outcomes cohort of 1,275 patients with advanced or recurrent EC from the Flatiron Health-Foundation Medicine CGDB was used to assess survival outcomes. Patients receiving human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-targeted therapy were excluded from the overall survival (OS) analysis. ERBB2amp prevalence, histologic and molecular correlations, and associations with OS were examined.
Results:
ERBB2amp was identified in 8% of EC tumors, with the highest prevalence among patients of African ancestry (12% v 7% European ancestry; P < .001). There was a significant association between ERBB2amp and serous histology, TP53 mutation presence, low tumor mutational burden, and microsatellite stability. In the outcomes cohort, ERBB2amp was not independently associated with OS (hazard ratio, 0.88 [95% CI, 0.65 to 1.17]; P = .37). In contrast, TP53mutation and poor performance status were independently associated with decreased OS. Notably, of patients with documented HER2 immunohistochemistry (IHC; n = 305), 22% of nonamplified tumors exhibited HER2 IHC 2+/3+ staining.
Conclusion:
ERBB2amp is more common among patients with African genetic ancestry and frequently co-occurs with TP53mutations, providing molecular rationale for EC disparities. Self-reported race does not fully capture genetic ancestry; therefore, comprehensive tumor profiling and HER2 IHC testing should be performed to improve selection for targeted therapies and help address disparities in EC outcomes.
