A study published today in Nature Genetics has revealed that tumor metastases accumulate copy number alterations (CNAs) such as genome doubling rather than genetic mutations. The CNAs can help metastases evade the immune system and resist immunotherapy. These findings could assist clinicians in making better decisions around the choice of precision medicine treatments, especially immunotherapy drugs such as checkpoint inhibitors.

“Our study found that during metastasis, cancer cells tend to evolve by maximizing CNAs, while not generating too many mutations that could potentially stimulate an immune response,” said Chaitanya Bandlamudi, PhD, cancer genomics researcher at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK).

While both mutations and CNA changes are known to accumulate in t

See Full Page