NTRK-fusions in pediatric thyroid tumors: Current state and future perspectives

Pediatric and adult papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) share many similar oncogenic drivers, but differ in the pathological features and outcomes of the disease. The most frequent genetic alterations in adult PTCs are mutually exclusive point mutations in BRAF or the RAS family. In pediatric PTC, fusion oncogenes involving chromosomal translocations in tyrosine kinase (TK) receptors, most commonly RET and NTRK, are the most common genetic alterations observed. This review of the literature describes the current state of translational research in pediatric NTRK-driven thyroid cancer and highlights opportunities to improve our understanding and current models of pediatric PTC. (c) 2022 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Automated summary

Pediatric and adult papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) differ in oncogenic drivers and genetic alterations, requiring further research and improvement in treatment models.