A proliferative subtype of colorectal liver metastases exhibits hypersensitivity to cytotoxic chemotherapy

NPJ Precis Oncol. 2022 Oct 14;6(1):72. doi: 10.1038/s41698-022-00318-z.

Abstract

Personalized treatment approaches for patients with limited liver metastases from colorectal cancer are critically needed. By leveraging three large, independent cohorts of patients with colorectal liver metastases (n = 336), we found that a proliferative subtype associated with elevated CIN70 scores is linked to immune exclusion, increased metastatic proclivity, and inferior overall survival in colorectal liver metastases; however, high CIN70 scores generate a therapeutic vulnerability to DNA-damaging therapies leading to improved treatment responses. We propose CIN70 as a candidate biomarker to personalize systemic treatment options for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. These findings are potentially broadly applicable to other human cancers.