Delayed MRI Enhancement of Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastases Is Associated With Metastatic Mutational Profile.

Background/aim Individual tumor genomics plays a key role in determining patient prognosis, response to chemotherapy and in guiding therapy. In prior studies, it was shown that the degree of late enhancement of colorectal liver metastases (CRCLM) target tumor enhancement (TTE) as seen on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was associated with overall survival. In order to better understand the relationship between MRI enhancement and survival, the aim of this study was to characterize genomic profiles of tumors clustered by MRI TTE, and investigate the association between TTE and genetic mutations. Materials and methods Matched tumor and normal tissue samples from patients with weak TTE and strong TTE were analyzed by Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology using a custom colorectal cancer panel. Results We discovered a total of 42 non-synonymous somatic mutations from 10 patients with weak TTE and 26 with 10 patients with strong TTE. Adenomatosis Polyposis Coli (APC) was the most commonly altered gene, 18 of those APC mutations were found in the weak TTE and 9 in the strong TTE group. Conclusion An association exists between TTE and mutational status of CRCLM, which may offer some explanation as to why TTE is associated with overall survival in patients with CRCLM.