Publications by authors named "Nick Waddell"

Melanoma of the skin is a common cancer only in Europeans, whereas it arises in internal body surfaces (mucosal sites) and on the hands and feet (acral sites) in people throughout the world. Here we report analysis of whole-genome sequences from cutaneous, acral and mucosal subtypes of melanoma. The heavily mutated landscape of coding and non-coding mutations in cutaneous melanoma resolved novel signatures of mutagenesis attributable to ultraviolet radiation.

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  • - The rise in diagnoses of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PanNETs) is largely due to improved detection methods, posing new challenges for treatment management.
  • - Whole-genome sequencing of 102 primary PanNETs revealed key genomic events, including a mutation in the MUTYH gene that impairs DNA repair, which is linked to several germline mutations found in 17% of patients.
  • - Somatic mutations affecting genes related to chromatin remodeling, DNA repair, mTOR signaling, and telomere maintenance were common, and some tumors exhibited unique characteristics associated with hypoxia and HIF signaling.
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Pancreatic cancer is molecularly diverse, with few effective therapies. Increased mutation burden and defective DNA repair are associated with response to immune checkpoint inhibitors in several other cancer types. We interrogated 385 pancreatic cancer genomes to define hypermutation and its causes.

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  • An integrated genomic study of 456 pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas identified 32 mutated genes organized into 10 key pathways affecting cancer development.
  • The analysis categorized the tumors into four distinct subtypes: squamous, pancreatic progenitor, immunogenic, and aberrantly differentiated endocrine exocrine (ADEX), each linked to unique histopathological traits.
  • Findings indicate that squamous tumors have poor prognosis and specific mutations, pancreatic progenitor tumors express developmental genes, ADEX tumors are linked to KRAS activation, and immunogenic tumors involve immune suppression networks, suggesting diverse molecular pathways for potential treatments.
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Treatment options for patients with brain metastases (BMs) have limited efficacy and the mortality rate is virtually 100%. Targeted therapy is critically under-utilized, and our understanding of mechanisms underpinning metastatic outgrowth in the brain is limited. To address these deficiencies, we investigated the genomic and transcriptomic landscapes of 36 BMs from breast, lung, melanoma and oesophageal cancers, using DNA copy-number analysis and exome- and RNA-sequencing.

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Patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) have experienced little improvement in overall survival, and standard treatment has not advanced beyond platinum-based combination chemotherapy, during the past 30 years. To understand the drivers of clinical phenotypes better, here we use whole-genome sequencing of tumour and germline DNA samples from 92 patients with primary refractory, resistant, sensitive and matched acquired resistant disease. We show that gene breakage commonly inactivates the tumour suppressors RB1, NF1, RAD51B and PTEN in HGSC, and contributes to acquired chemotherapy resistance.

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Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most lethal of malignancies and a major health burden. We performed whole-genome sequencing and copy number variation (CNV) analysis of 100 pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDACs). Chromosomal rearrangements leading to gene disruption were prevalent, affecting genes known to be important in pancreatic cancer (TP53, SMAD4, CDKN2A, ARID1A and ROBO2) and new candidate drivers of pancreatic carcinogenesis (KDM6A and PREX2).

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Oesophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) incidence is rapidly increasing in Western countries. A better understanding of EAC underpins efforts to improve early detection and treatment outcomes. While large EAC exome sequencing efforts to date have found recurrent loss-of-function mutations, oncogenic driving events have been underrepresented.

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