Characterization of anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive medulloblastomas. (January 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Yan, Benedict; Kuick, Chik Hong; Lim, Malcolm; Yong, Min Hwee; Lee, Chi Kuen; Low, Sharon Y.Y.; Low, David C.Y.; Lim, Diana; Soh, Shui Yen; Chang, Kenneth T.E.
• Is Part Of: Journal of clinical neuroscience. Volume 23(2016:Jan.)
• Page Start: 120
• Page End: 122
• Publication Date: 2016-01
• Subjects: ALK -- Immunohistochemistry -- Medulloblastoma -- Tyrosine kinase; Brain -- Surgery -- Periodicals; Neurosciences -- Periodicals; Nervous system -- Surgery -- Periodicals; Brain -- surgery -- Periodicals; Neurosurgical Procedures -- Periodicals; Neurosciences -- Periodicals; Electronic journals; 616.8
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jocn.2015.08.017
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0967-5868

Abstract

Abstract: Medulloblastomas are the most common pediatric malignant primary brain tumor. To our knowledge, there are no known critical and druggable tyrosine kinases in medulloblastomas, precluding the use of established tyrosine kinase inhibitors that have shown efficacy in other tumor types. We studied the expression of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), a well-characterized tyrosine kinase and drug target, in a cohort of medulloblastomas by immunohistochemistry, and identified three ALK-positive cases. Mutational analyses did not reveal a definite underlying genetic mechanism for the ALK expression, although one of the cases showed increased ALK copy number. Our findings have clinical implications and warrant further pharmacological and functional studies, as well as evaluation in larger patient cohorts, to fully characterize the value of ALK as a prognostic and predictive therapeutic marker in medulloblastomas.