title: A Cross-Sectional Comparison of Druggable Mutations in Primary Tumors, Metastatic Tissue, Circulating Tumor Cells, and Cell-Free Circulating DNA in Patients with Metastatic Breast Cancer: The MIRROR Study Protocol.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Characterization of the driver mutations in an individual metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patient is critical to selecting effective targeted therapies. Currently, it is believed that the limited efficacy of many targeted drugs may be due to the expansion of drug resistant clones with different genotypes that were already present in the primary tumor. Identifying the genomic alterations of these clones, and introducing combined or sequential targeted drug regimens, could lead to a significant increase in the efficacy of currently available targeted therapies.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The primary objective of this study is to assess the concordance/discordance of mutations between the primary tumor and metastatic tissue in MBC patients. Secondary objectives include comparing the genomic profiles of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating free DNA (cfDNA) from peripheral blood with those of the primary tumor and metastatic tissue for each patient, evaluating these mutations in the signaling pathways that are relevant to the disease, and testing the feasibility of introducing liquid biopsy as a translational laboratory tool in clinical practice.
  
  
  METHODS
  The multicenter, transversal, observational MIRROR study is currently ongoing in three participating hospitals. All consecutive patients with MBC confirmed by radiologic findings will be screened for eligibility, either at first relapse or if tumor regrowth occurs while on treatment for metastatic disease.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patient recruitment is currently ongoing. To date, 41 patients have a complete set of tissue samples available (plasma, CTCs, and formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded primary tumor and metastatic tumor). However, none of these samples have undergone nucleic acids extraction or targeted deep sequencing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study may have a significant influence on the practical management of patients with MBC, and may provide clues to clinicians that lead towards a better stratification of patients, resulting in more selective and less toxic treatments. Additionally, if genomic mutations found in metastatic tissues are similar to those detected in CTCs and/or cfDNA, liquid biopsies could prove to be a more convenient, non-invasive, and easily accessible source of genomic material for the analysis of mutations and other genomic aberrations in MBC.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02626039; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02626039 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6jlneVyoz).
authors.affiliation: Gregorio Marañón Health Research Institute, Laboratory of Translational Oncology, Sequencing & Genotyping-Research Shared Resources, Gregorio Marañón General University Hospital, Madrid, Spain. milagros.gonzalez@iisgm.com.
authors.forename: Milagros
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4302-0752
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gonzalez-Rivera
authors.forename: Antoni C
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3679-9662
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Picornell
authors.forename: Enrique L
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6589-1201
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Alvarez
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9237-3231
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martin
keywords: breast neoplasm; drug therapy; genetics; molecular targeted therapy; sequence analysis.