Spanish Guidelines for the use of targeted deep sequencing in myelodysplastic syndromes and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia

Abstract

Altres ajuts: This work was supported by a grant from the Spanish Group of MDS (GESMD, 2017). LP, FF, PA and FS research is supported by a grant from (GRC) Generalitat de Catalunya, economical support from CERCA Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya, Fundacio Internacional Josep Carreras and from Celgene International. LP and JMHS are supported by a research grant from FEHH (Fundacion Española de Hematología y Hemoterapia, 2017). IV acknowledges support from Pethema. MC and LZ research is supported by a grant from Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Spain. MFM and her research is supported by the Spanish Association against Cancer (AECC, AIO2014), and the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spanish Central Government.

The landscape of medical sequencing has rapidly changed with the evolution of next generation sequencing (NGS). These technologies have contributed to the molecular characterization of the myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML), through the identification of recurrent gene mutations, which are present in >80% of patients. These mutations contribute to a better classification and risk stratification of the patients. Currently, clinical laboratories include NGS genomic analyses in their routine clinical practice, in an effort to personalize the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of MDS and CMML. NGS technologies have reduced the cost of large-scale sequencing, but there are additional challenges involving the clinical validation of these technologies, as continuous advances are constantly being made. In this context, it is of major importance to standardize the generation, analysis, clinical interpretation and reporting of NGS data. To that end, the Spanish MDS Group (GESMD) has expanded the present set of guidelines, aiming to establish common quality standards for the adequate implementation of NGS and clinical interpretation of the results, hoping that this effort will ultimately contribute to the benefit of patients with myeloid malignancies.