Feasibility and clinical impact of routine molecular testing of gastrointestinal cancers at a tertiary centre with a multi-gene, tumor-agnostic, next generation sequencing panel

Abstract

Background: High-throughput sequencing technologies are increasingly used in research but limited data are available on the feasibility and value of these when routinely adopted in clinical practice. Material and methods: We analyzed all consecutive cancer patients for whom genomic testing by a 48-gene next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel (Truseq Amplicon Cancer Panel, Illumina) was requested as part of standard care in one of the largest Belgian cancer networks between 2014 and 2019. Feasibility of NGS was assessed in all study patients, while the impact of NGS on the decision making was analyzed in the group of gastrointestinal cancer patients. Results: Tumor samples from 1064 patients with varying tumor types were tested, the number of NGS requests increasing over time (p