Altered interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization profiles of chromosomes 4, 8q24, and 9q34 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma are associated with a poorer patient outcome.

Most patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) die within 6 months of diagnosis. However, 20% to 25% patients undergoing total tumor resection remain alive and disease-free 5 years after diagnostic surgery. Few studies on tumor markers have predicted patient prognosis and/or survival. We evaluated the effect of tumor cytogenetic copy number changes detected by interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization on overall survival (OS) of 55 PDAC patients. The prognostic value of copy number changes showing an effect on OS was validated in an external cohort of 44 surgically resected PDAC patients by comparative genomic hybridization arrays, and the genes coded in altered chromosomes with prognostic value were identified by high-density single-nucleotide polymorphism arrays in 20 cases. Copy number changes of chromosomes 4 and 9q34 with gains of 8q24 were independently associated with shorter OS. On the basis of these three chromosomal alterations, a score is proposed that identifies patients with significantly different (P < 0.001) 5-year OS rates: 60% ± 20%, 16% ± 8%, and 0% ± 0%, respectively. Our results show an association between tumor cytogenetics and OS of PDAC patients and provide the basis for further prognostic stratification of patients undergoing complete tumor resection. Further studies to identify specific genes coded in these chromosomes and their functional consequences are necessary to understand the clinical effect of these changes.