Abstract 5759: The landscape of copy-number changes across multiple human cancer types

Abstract

Abstract Genomic regions undergoing frequent alteration in human cancers often point to genes that play causal roles in oncogenesis. We have performed high-resolution analyses of copy-number alterations from 3131 cancer specimens across multiple histological types. We identified 158 regions of that are significantly altered by focal copy-number changes. Among these, 122 regions cannot be explained by the presence of a known cancer gene. Several gene families are enriched among these regions, including the BCL2 family of apoptosis regulators and the NF-κB pathway. Cell lines with amplifications of the anti-apoptotic genes MCL1 and BCL2L1 depend upon these genes for survival. Finally, we find that the majority of copy-number changes identified in individual cancer types are present across multiple cancer types. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5759.