ArticleThe Journal of pathology2024
Research autopsy programmes in oncology: shared experience from 14 centres across the world.
Article in The Journal of pathology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Determinants of Interest-Holder Perspectives Toward Post-Mortem Tissue Donation in Oncology: A Systematic Review.Psycho-oncology · 2026Pooled it
- The immunobiology of pancreatic cancer metastasis: premetastatic niche formation, organ-specific immune landscapes, and therapeutic opportunities.Cancer metastasis reviews · 2026Review
- A nationwide survey of Japanese public perceptions of the necessity of antemortem informed consent for Rapid Autopsy Programs (RAP): comparison with other methods of postmortem human tissue utilization.BMC medical ethics · 2026Article
- Review
- Clinical and histopathological characterization of metastatic lobular breast cancer: lessons learned from post-mortem tissue donation programs.NPJ breast cancer · 2026Article
- ctDNA detectability and representativeness in seven body liquids from patients with metastatic breast cancer.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Enhancing translational research in metastatic cancer through an open science environment: the UPTIDER experience.NPJ precision oncology · 2025Article
- Experts' attitudes towards 'targeted autopsies' using qualitative interviews in a medical network in Germany.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Distant metastases of melanoma exhibit varying extent of intrapatient proteogenomic heterogeneity.Clinical and translational medicine · 2025Article
- Uncovering phenotypic heterogeneity through research autopsy in lethal prostate cancer.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2025Article
- Distinct metastatic organotropism shapes prognosis in lung adenocarcinoma with brain metastasis.Frontiers in oncology · 2025Article
- Organ-Specific Immune Setpoints Underlie Divergent Immune Profiles across Metastatic Sites in Breast Cancer.Cancer immunology research · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
46 authors.
Funding
Abstract
While there is a great clinical need to understand the biology of metastatic cancer in order to treat it more effectively, research is hampered by limited sample availability. Research autopsy programmes can crucially advance the field through synchronous, extensive, and high-volume sample collection. However, it remains an underused strategy in translational research. Via an extensive questionnaire, we collected information on the study design, enrolment strategy, study conduct, sample and data management, and challenges and opportunities of research autopsy programmes in oncology worldwide. Fourteen programmes participated in this study. Eight programmes operated 24 h/7 days, resulting in a lower median postmortem interval (time between death and start of the autopsy, 4 h) compared with those operating during working hours (9 h). Most programmes (n = 10) succeeded in collecting all samples within a median of 12 h after death. A large number of tumour sites were sampled during each autopsy (median 15.5 per patient). The median number of samples collected per patient was 58, including different processing methods for tumour samples but also non-tumour tissues and liquid biopsies. Unique biological insights derived from these samples included metastatic progression, treatment resistance, disease heterogeneity, tumour dormancy, interactions with the tumour micro-environment, and tumour representation in liquid biopsies. Tumour patient-derived xenograft (PDX) or organoid (PDO) models were additionally established, allowing for drug discovery and treatment sensitivity assays. Apart from the opportunities and achievements, we also present the challenges related with postmortem sample collections and strategies to overcome them, based on the shared experience of these 14 programmes. Through this work, we hope to increase the transparency of postmortem tissue donation, to encourage and aid the creation of new programmes, and to foster collaborations on these unique sample collections. © 2024 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
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