Epidermal growth factor receptor extracellular domain mutations in primary glioblastoma.

Aims: Novel missense mutations of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) extracellular domain have been recently described in a large series of glioblastomas.

Methods: The exons 2, 3, 7, 8 and 15 coding for the EGFR extracellular domain were sequenced in a series of 161 consecutive primary glioblastomas and correlated with clinical features of patients in order to determine whether these alterations are linked to specific clinical characteristics of the disease.

Results: Missense mutations were observed in 18 cases (11.