| Abstract: | Recent sequencing studies demonstrated the MYD88 L265P mutation in more than 70% of primary central nervous system lymphomas (PCNSL), and the clinical significance of this mutation has been proposed as diagnostic and prognostic markers in PCNSL. In contrast, mutational analyses using cell‐free DNAs have been reported in a variety of systemic lymphomas. To investigate how sensitively the MYD88 L265P mutation can be identified in cell‐free DNA from PCNSL patients, we carried out droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) and targeted deep sequencing (TDS) in 14 consecutive PCNSL patients from whom paired tumor‐derived DNA and cell‐free DNA was available at diagnosis. The MYD88 L265P mutation was found in tumor‐derived DNA from all 14 patients (14/14, 100%). In contrast, among 14 cell‐free DNAs evaluated by ddPCR (14/14) and TDS (13/14), the MYD88 L265P mutation was detected in eight out of 14 (ddPCR) and in 0 out of 13 (TDS) samples, implying dependence on the detection method. After chemotherapy, the MYD88 L265P mutation in cell‐free DNAs was traced in five patients; unexpectedly, the mutations disappeared after chemotherapy was given, and they remained undetectable in all patients. These observations suggest that ddPCR can sensitively detect the MYD88 L265P mutation in cell‐free DNA and could be used as non‐invasive diagnostics, but may not be applicable for monitoring minimal residual diseases in PCNSL. |
