Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42536421›Full record

ArticleThe oncologist2026

Genomic landscape and clinical characteristics of ERBB2/HER2-mutated colorectal cancers.

Muhammed Dogukan Aksu, Paola Zinser Peniche, Doga Kahramangil Baytar, Bhaghyasree Jambunathan, Yu Jen Alexander Jan, Ronan Hsieh, Shafia Rahman, John C Krauss, Christine M Veenstra, Ibrahim Halil Sahin

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Article in The oncologist, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Muhammed Dogukan AksuDivision of Medical Oncology, Department of Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, 55905, United States.
Paola Zinser PenicheDepartment of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, United States.
Doga Kahramangil BaytarDepartment of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, United States.
Bhaghyasree JambunathanDepartment of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, United States.
Yu Jen Alexander JanDepartment of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, United States.
Ronan HsiehDivision of Hematology and Oncology, Swedish Cancer Institute, Seattle, WA, 98104, United States.
Shafia RahmanDepartment of Internal Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, OH, 432120, United States.
John C KraussDivision of Hematology and Oncology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, United States.
Christine M VeenstraDivision of Hematology and Oncology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, United States.ORCID 0000-0001-9947-7156
Ibrahim Halil SahinDivision of Hematology and Oncology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, United States.ORCID 0000-0003-2758-3077

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMolecular underpinnings and clinical characteristics of ERBB2/HER2-mutated colorectal cancers (CRCs) remain poorly understood. We aimed to comprehensively characterize the genomic landscape and clinical features of ERBB2/HER2-mutated CRC and to compare them with those of ERBB2/HER2-amplified CRC. PATIENTS AND

methodsWe analyzed cBioPortal data from 4348 CRC patients with available ERBB2/HER2 profiling. Clinicodemographic features, microsatellite instability (MSI), tumor mutational burden, and alterations in 94 cancer-associated genes were evaluated using chi-square/Fisher's exact test, Kruskal-Wallis test, and hierarchical clustering.

resultsERBB2/HER2 putative driver mutations were identified in 95 patients (2.2%), amplifications in 87 (2.0%), and wild-type status in 4166 (95.8%). In the overall cohort, ERBB2/HER2-mutated tumors demonstrated significant KRAS enrichment (50.5%) compared to wild-type (37.7%; P = .014) and amplified tumors (18.4%; P < .001), alongside MSI enrichment (37.2% vs 1.6%; P < .001), elevated tumor mutational burden, and right-sided predominance. ERBB2/HER2-mutated tumors also showed broad driver co-alterations largely reflecting their MSI background. In contrast, ERBB2/HER2-amplified tumors exhibited left-sided predominance, with microsatellite stable (MSS)-restricted analyses revealing selective mutual exclusivity with KRAS (Log2 OR = -1.58; q = 0.019) and TP53 co-occurrence (Log2 OR = 2.04; q = 0.019). Hierarchical clustering confirmed that mutated and amplified tumors consistently occupy separate clusters across anatomical sites.

conclusionERBB2/HER2 mutations and amplifications represent molecularly and clinically distinct subgroups. ERBB2/HER2-mutated tumors are characterized by an MSI-enriched, hypermutated background with frequent concurrent KRAS alterations, whereas amplified tumors exhibit selective KRAS mutual exclusivity and TP53 co-occurrence. These exploratory findings support alteration-specific therapeutic strategies in CRC.

Indexed as

Colorectal NeoplasmsErb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine KinasesAgedFemaleGenomicsHumansMaleMicrosatellite InstabilityMiddle AgedMutationERBB2 protein, humanErb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinasescoloncolorectal neoplasmsERBB2/HER2genomicsmutationrectum

Identifiers

PMID42536421
PMCPMC13466721

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.