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Copy number variations inDCC/18q andERBB2/17q are associated with disease-free survival in microsatellite stable colon cancer

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We conducted a prospective study to assess the prognostic impact of selected copy number variations (CNVs) in stage II-III microsatellite stable (MSS) colon cancer. A total of 401 patients were included from 01/2004 to 01/2009. The CNVs in 8 selected target genes, DCC/18q, EGFR/7p, TP53/17p, BLK/8p, MYC/8q, APC/5q, ERBB2/17q, and STK6/20q, were detected using a quantitative multiplex polymerase chain reaction of short fluorescent fragment (QMPSF) method. The primary end-point was the impact of the CNVs on the 4-year disease-free survival (DFS). The recurrence rate at 4 years was 20.9%, corresponding to 14% stage II patients vs 31% stage III patients (p<0.0001). The 4-year DFS was significantly decreased in patients with a loss at DCC/18q (p=0.012) and a gain at ERBB2/17q (p=0.041). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that stage III, a loss at DCC/18q and a gain at ERBB2/17q were independent factors associated with DFS. A combination of DCC/18q and ERBB2/17q was also associated with relapse, with the hazard ratio increasing from 1 to 2.4 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.5-4.1) and 3.1 (95% CI, 1.2-8.4) in the presence of 0, 1, or 2 alterations, respectively (p=0.0013). CNVs in DCC/18q and ERBB2/17q are significantly associated with DFS in stage II-III MSS colon cancer. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.