Durable response to afatinib in advanced lung adenocarcinoma harboring a novel NPTN-NRG1 fusion: a case report

Abstract Background NRG1 fusions are rare oncogenic drivers in solid tumors, and the incidence of NRG1 fusions in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was 0.26%. It is essential to explore potential therapeutic strategies and efficacy predictors for NRG1 fusion-positive cancers. Case presentation We r...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xin Nie, Ping Zhang, Zhixin Bie, Chenhui Song, Min Zhang, Di Ma, Di Cui, Gang Cheng, Hui Li, Yan Lei, Xiaoxing Su, Wendy Wu, Lin Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2023-08-01
Series:World Journal of Surgical Oncology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12957-023-03129-z
Description
Summary:Abstract Background NRG1 fusions are rare oncogenic drivers in solid tumors, and the incidence of NRG1 fusions in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was 0.26%. It is essential to explore potential therapeutic strategies and efficacy predictors for NRG1 fusion-positive cancers. Case presentation We report an advanced lung adenocarcinoma patient harboring a novel NPTN-NRG1 fusion identified by RNA-based next-generation sequencing (NGS), which was not detected by DNA-based NGS at initial diagnosis. Transcriptomics data of the tissue biopsy showed NRG1α isoform accounted for 30% of total NRG1 reads, and NRG1β isoform was undetectable. The patient received afatinib as fourth-line treatment and received a progression-free survival (PFS) of 14 months. Conclusions This report supports afatinib can provide potential benefit for NRG1 fusion patients, and RNA-based NGS is an accurate and cost-effective strategy for fusion detection and isoform identification.
ISSN:1477-7819