The impact of the multi-disciplinary molecular tumour board and integrative next generation sequencing on clinical outcomes in advanced solid tumours

Background The integration of next-generation sequencing (NGS) comprehensive gene profiling (CGP) into clinical practice is playing an increasingly important role in oncology. Therefore, the HKU-HKSH Multi-disciplinary Molecular Tumour Board (MTB) was established to advance precision oncology in Hong Kong. A multicenter retrospective study investigated the feasibility of the HKU-HKSH MTB in determining genome-guided therapy for treatment-refractory solid cancers in Hong Kong. Methods Patients who were presented at the HKU-HKSH MTB between August 2018 and June 2022 were included in this study. The primary study endpoints were the proportion of patients who receive MTB-guided therapy based on genomic analysis and overall survival (OS). Secondary endpoints included the proportion of patients with actionable genomic alterations, objective response rate (ORR), and disease control rate (DCR). The Kaplan-Meier method was used in the survival analyses, and hazard ratios were calculated using univariate Cox regression. Findings 122 patients were reviewed at the HKU-HKSH MTB, and 63% (n = 77) adopted treatment per the MTB recommendations. These patients achieved a significantly longer median OS than those who did not receive MTBguided therapy (12.7 months vs. 5.2 months, P = 0.0073). Their ORR and DCR were 29% and 65%, respectively. Interpretation Our study demonstrated that among patients with heavily pre-treated advanced solid cancers, MTBguided treatment could positively impact survival outcomes, thus illustrating the applicability of NGS CGPs in real-world clinical practice. Funding The study was supported by the Li Shu Pui Medical Foundation. Dr Aya El Helali was supported by the Li Shu Pui Medical Foundation Fellowship grant from the Li Shu Pui Medical Foundation. Funders had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, interpretation, or writing of the report. Copyright (c) 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Automated summary

This study investigated the feasibility of the HKU-HKSH Multi-disciplinary Molecular Tumour Board (MTB) in determining genome-guided therapy for treatment-refractory solid cancers in Hong Kong. The results showed that MTB-guided treatment positively impacted patients' overall survival, illustrating the applicability of next-generation sequencing comprehensive gene profiling (CGP) in real-world clinical practice.