Background
- TERT is a catalytic subunit of telomerase, the unique enzyme that confers immortality to cells and is expressed in > 90% of cancer cells.
- Mutations in the TERT promoter region (pTERTmut) are the most prevalent noncoding mutations in cancer.
- TERT is self-antigen and is immunogenic first reported by the Zanetti lab at UCSD two decades ago and subsequently by many groups worldwide.
- Immunogenic response to TERT are linked to improved outcomes for patients with cancer.
- Data suggest patients with pTERTmut have worse clinical outcomes
- However, small datasets suggest improved outcomes for patients with UC whose tumors harbor a pTERTmut when treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors
- We evaluated the molecular and immune landscape of UC with and without pTERTmut.