ASSESSMENT OF MICROSATELLITE ALTERATIONS IN YOUNG-PATIENTS WITH GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA

BACKGROUND. Genetic factors are probably important in the development of gastric carcinoma in young patients (younger than 40 years). The au thors investigated early onset primary gastric adenocarcinomas for the presence of microsatellite instability, which is a phenotypic marker fur the hereditary nonpolyposis colon carcinoma syndrome. METHODS. DNA was extracted from archival microdissected carcinoma and correspondin g normal tissue from 10 British gastric carcinoma patients age 19 to 3 9 years at tile time of diagnosis. A panel of 12 microsatellite loci w ere amplified by fluorescent polymerase chain reaction and analyzed us ing an automated DNA sequencer. RESULTS. There was no evidence of micr osatellite instability. In contrast, allelic imbalance was recorded at D3S966, D3S1076, D10S197, D11S904, P53, NM23, and DCC microsatellite loci. CONCLUSIONS. The authors reported ten cases of early onset gastr ic carcinoma that demonstrated allelic imbalance but no evidence of in stability at microsatellite loci. It is unlikely that defective DNA mi smatch repair is important in this group of young patients. (C) 1997 A merican Cancer Society.