Low incidence of BRAF and NRAS mutations in a population with a high incidence of melanoma

AbstractReported rates ofBRAF mutation in Irish cutaneous melanoma cohorts are lower than the reported international data. We aimed to assess the mutational status of a cohort of primary cutaneous melanomas and to correlate it with clinical follow-up data.A total of 92 cases of primary cutaneous melanoma diagnosed at a single institution in 2012 were analyzed. Regions containing common mutations in theBRAF,NRAS,KIT, andKRAS genes were investigated by PCR amplification followed by Sanger sequencing. Demographic details, tumor characteristics, and 10-year outcome data were also obtained.Ten cases withBRAF V600E mutations (11.6%) and five (5.49%)NRAS mutations (4 at Q61R, 1 at Q61K) were detected. No statistically significant differences were noted between groups for age, gender, depth of invasion, nodal status, or recurrence status (p≥ 0.05).These findings suggest that the Irish population has a markedly lower incidence ofBRAF andNRAS mutations in melanoma than those reported in other cohorts.
Source: Virchows Archiv - Category: Pathology Source Type: research