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Importance Obesity is a risk factor associated with multiple myeloma (MM) and its precursor, monoclonal gammopathy of unknown significance (MGUS). However, it is unclear how cumulative exposure to obesity affects the risk of MGUS progression to MM. Objective To determine the association of cumulative exposure to excess body mass index (EBMI), defined as BMI (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) greater than 25, with risk of MGUS progression to MM. Design, Setting, and Participants This cohort study included patients with MGUS, including immunoglobin G, immunoglobin A, or light chain MGUS, from the nationwide US Veterans Health Administration database from October 1, 1999, to December 31, 2021. A published natural language processing–assisted model was used to confirm diagnoses of MGUS and progression to MM. Data were analyzed from February 12 to November 4, 2024. Exposures Cumulative EBMI was calculated by area under the curve of measured BMI subtracting the reference BMI at 25 during the first 3 years after MGUS diagnosis. Main Outcomes and Measures The main outcome was progression from MGUS to MM. Multivariable Fine-Gray time-to-competing-event analyses, with death as the competing event, were used to determine associations. Results The cohort included 22 429 patients with MGUS (median [IQR] age, 70.5 [63.5-77.9] years; 21 613 [96.4%] male), with 8329 Black patients (37.1%) and 14 100 White patients (62.9%). There were 4862 patients (21.7%) with reference range BMI (18.5 to <25), 7619 patients (34.0%) with BMI 25 to less than 30, and 8513 patients (38.0%) with BMI 30 or greater at the time of MGUS diagnosis. Compared with reference range BMI at MGUS diagnosis, patients with BMI 25 to less than 30 (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.17; 95% CI, 1.03-1.34) or 30 or greater (aHR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.09-1.47) at MGUS diagnosis had higher risk of progression to MM. In patients with reference range BMI at MGUS diagnosis, each 1-unit increase of EBMI per year was associated with a 21% increase in progression risk (aHR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.04-1.40). However, for patients with BMI 25 or greater at MGUS diagnosis, the incremental risk associated with cumulative EBMI exposure was not statistically significant. Conclusions and Relevance This cohort study found that, for patients with BMI 18.5 to less than 25 at the time of MGUS diagnosis, cumulative exposure to BMI 25 or greater was associated with an increased risk of progression. These findings suggest that for these patients, maintaining a healthy and stable weight following MGUS diagnosis may prevent progression to MM.

Abstract PURPOSE To examine incremental values of estrogen receptor (ER) status, body mass index (BMI), menopausal status, and a previously reported multi-gene classifier over commonly used clinical factors (i.e. age, tumor grade, comedonecrosis, surgical margins, and treatment) in predicting risk of any ipsilateral recurrence (IR) event within five years after DCIS diagnosis. METHODS A derivation cohort consisted of participants in the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium (TBCRC) 038, a retrospective multicenter cohort study in women undergoing surgical resection for DCIS between 01/01/1998 and 02/29/2016 (n=216). The validation cohort, the Repository of Archival Human Breast Tissue (RAHBT) at Washington University School of Medicine, provided cases meeting the same eligibility criteria as TBCRC038 (n=97). Participants in both cohorts had RNA-seq data and either developed IR 1-5y after initial DCIS diagnosis or were free from subsequent breast events for at least five years. The previously reported 812-gene classifier had been developed from a subset of the TBCRC038 samples using a negative-binomial regression model to identify differentially expressed genes in the primary tumor associated with subsequent recurrence events. This classifier has been shown to be highly correlated with 5-year invasive, DCIS, and all breast cancer events, and validated in the RAHBT cohort. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) of IR in the TBCRC038 cohort (76 with IR). The clinical score was developed using clinical predictors (aforementioned clinical factors and ER) and their regression coefficients from the model with the maximum predictive accuracy (e.g. c-index) and the minimum number of predictors; the summary score integrated the clinical score and multi-gene classifier. Predictive performance of both clinical and summary scores was validated in the RAHBT cohort (20 with IR). RESULTS In the TBCRC cohort derivation set, we used a multivariable model based on clinical factors alone (clinical score) and found that ER status, but not BMI or menopausal status, was independently associated with a higher IR risk (HR=2.06, 95% CI 1.18-3.58). Adding the multi-gene classifier to the clinical factors-based model (summary score) in the TBCRC038 test set increased predictive accuracy (c-index 0.68 to 0.70), with the genomic classifier-adjusted HR of 14.96 (95% CI 8.64-25.91). The summary score had higher predictive performance for IR risk than clinical score alone (c-index 0.82 vs. 0.70). In the RAHBT validation samples, model performance was similarly improved using summary scores clinical factors-based model plus multigene classifier as compared to clinical scores along (c-index 0.74 vs. 0.58). CONCLUSION Combining clinical factors and a multigene classifier provided more accurate risk estimates of IR within five years after excision of DCIS than clinical factors alone. Figure 1. Observed and predicted recurrence-free survival in the first five years after initial DCIS diagnosis in the RAHBT validation cohort, by risk groups defined by clinical scores (left) and clinical score plus multigene classifier (right). Citation Format: Ying Liu, Siri H. Strand, Lorraine King, Bryan Harmon, Fergus J. Couch, Kristalyn Gallagher, Mark Kilgore, Shi Wei, Angela DeMichele, Tari King, Priscilla F. McAuliffe, Jeffrey Marks, Carlo Maley, Robert West, E Shelley Hwang, Graham A. Colditz. Using clinical characteristics and molecular markers to predict the risk of subsequent ipsilateral breast events after excision of DCIS [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2022 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(5 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-07-02.

Abstract Background: Engaging diverse populations in cancer genomics research is of critical importance and is a fundamental goal of the NCI Participant Engagement and Cancer Genome Sequencing (PE-CGS) Network. Established as part of the Cancer Moonshot, PE-CGS is a consortium of stakeholders including clinicians, scientists, genetic counselors, and representatives of potential study participants and their communities. Participant engagement is an ongoing, bidirectional, and mutually beneficial interaction between study participants and researchers. PE-CGS sought to set priorities in participant engagement for conducting the network's research. Methods: PE-CGS deliberatively engaged its stakeholders in the following four-phase process to set the network's research priorities in participant engagement: (i) a brainstorming exercise to elicit potential priorities; (ii) a 2-day virtual meeting to discuss priorities; (iii) recommendations from the PE-CGS External Advisory Panel to refine priorities; and (iv) a virtual meeting to set priorities. Results: Nearly 150 PE-CGS stakeholders engaged in the process. Five priorities were set: (i) tailor education and communication materials for participants throughout the research process; (ii) identify measures of participant engagement; (iii) identify optimal participant engagement strategies; (iv) understand cancer disparities in the context of cancer genomics research; and (v) personalize the return of genomics findings to participants. Conclusions: PE-CGS is pursuing these priorities to meaningfully engage diverse and underrepresented patients with cancer and posttreatment cancer survivors as participants in cancer genomics research and, subsequently, generate new discoveries. Impact: Data from PE-CGS will be shared with the broader scientific community in a manner consistent with participant informed consent and community agreement.

Abstract Purpose To determine if the COVID‐19 pandemic has further exacerbated racial disparities in late‐stage presentation of breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancers. Methods We conducted a registry‐based retrospective study of patients with newly reported diagnoses of breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancers between March 2019–June 2019 (pre‐COVID‐19) and March 2020–June 2020 (early‐COVID‐19). We compared the volume of new diagnoses and stage at presentation according to race between both periods. Results During the study period, a total of 3528 patients had newly diagnosed cancer; 3304 of which had known disease stages and were included in the formal analyses. 467 (14.1%) were Blacks, and 2743 were (83%) Whites. 1216 (36.8%) had breast, 415 (12.6%) had colorectal, 827 (25%) had lung, and 846 (25.6%) had prostate cancers, respectively. The pre‐COVID‐19 period included 2120 (64.2%), and the early‐COVID‐19 period included 1184 (35.8%), representing a proportional 44.2% decline in the volume of new cases of breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancers, p < 0.0001. Pre‐COVID‐19, 16.8% were diagnosed with metastatic disease, versus 20.4% early‐COVID‐19, representing a proportional increase of 21.4% in the numbers of new cases with metastatic disease, p = 0.01. There was a non‐significant proportional decline of 1.9% in Black patients diagnosed with non‐metastatic breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancers early‐COVID‐19 ( p = 0.71) and a non‐significant proportional increase of 7% in Black patients diagnosed with metastatic disease ( p = 0.71). Difference‐in‐difference analyses showed no statistically significant differences in metastatic presentation comparing Black to White patients. Conclusion While we identified substantial reductions in the volume of new cancer diagnoses and increases in metastatic presentations due to the COVID‐19 pandemic, the impact was similar for White and Black patients.

Abstract Background. DCIS consists of a molecularly heterogeneous group of premalignant lesions, with variable risk of invasive progression. Understanding biomarkers for invasive progression could help individualize treatment recommendations based upon tumor biology. As part of the NCI Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN), we conducted comprehensive genomic analyses on two large DCIS case-control cohorts. Methods. We performed smart3-seq and low-pass whole genome sequencing on two independent, retrospective, longitudinally sampled DCIS case-control cohorts. TBCRC 038 was a multicenter cohort diagnosed with DCIS between 1998 and 2016 at one of the Translational Breast Cancer Research sites; the RAHBT (Resource of Archival Human Breast Tissue) cohort included women identified through the St. Louis Breast Tissue Repository, and the Women’s Health Repository diagnosed between 1997 and 2001. We studied the spectrum of molecular changes present and sought genomic predictors of subsequent ipsilateral breast events (iBEs: DCIS recurrence or invasive progression) in both DCIS epithelium and stroma in formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissue. We generated de novo tumor and stroma-centric subtypes for DCIS that represents fundamental transcriptomic organization. Copy number analysis was performed using low-pass DNA sequencing. Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) was applied to the RNA expression of all coding genes to identify clusters. A negative-binomial regression model was used to identify differentially expressed genes. Results. We analyzed 677 DCIS samples from 481 patients with 7.1 years median follow-up. In TBCRC samples, we identified three clusters via NMF in TBCRC referred to as ER low, quiescent, and ER high. The ER-low cluster had significantly higher levels of ERBB2 and lower levels of ESR1 compared to quiescent and ER-high clusters. Quiescent cluster lesions were less proliferative and less metabolically active than ER high and ER low subtypes. These findings were replicated in the RAHBT cohort. Focusing on the stromal component of DCIS from laser capture microdissection in RAHBT samples, we identified four distinct DCIS-associated stromal clusters. A “normal-like” stromal cluster with ECM organization and PI3K-AKT signaling; a “collagen-rich” stromal cluster; a “desmoplastic” stromal cluster with high fibroblast and total myeloid abundance, mostly associated with macrophages and myeloid dendritic cells (mDC); and an “immune-dense” stromal cluster. Further, we compared differentially expressed genes in patients with or without subsequent iBEs within 5 years of diagnosis. Hypothesizing that the resulting 812 DE genes (DESeq2) represent multiple routes to subsequent iBEs, we leveraged NMF to identify paths to progression. In both TBCRC and RAHBT cohorts, poor outcome groups exhibited increased ER, MYC signaling, and oxidative phosphorylation, supporting that these pathways are important for DCIS recurrence and progression. Conclusion. Comprehensive genomic profiling in two independent DCIS cohorts with longitudinal outcomes shows distinct DCIS stromal expression patterns and immune cell composition. RNA expression profiles reveal underlying tumor biology that is associated with later iBEs in both cohorts. These studies provide new insight into DCIS biology and will guide the design of diagnostic strategies to prevent invasive progression. Citation Format: Siri H Strand, Belén Rivero-Gutiérrez, Kathleen E Houlahan, Jose A Seoane, Lorraine M King, Tyler Risom, Lunden Simpson, Sujay Vennam, Aziz Khan, Timothy Hardman, Bryan E Harmon, Fergus J Couch, Kristalyn Gallagher, Mark Kilgore, Shi Wei, Angela DeMichele, Tari King, Priscilla F McAuliffe, Julie Nangia, Joanna Lee, Jennifer Tseng, Anna Maria Storniolo, Alastair Thompson, Gaorav Gupta, Robyn Burns, Deborah J Veis, Katherine DeSchryver, Chunfang Zhu, Magdalena Matusiak, Jason Wang, Shirley X Zhu, Jen Tappenden, Daisy Yi Ding, Dadong Zhang, Jingqin Luo, Shu Jiang, Sushama Varma, Cody Straub, Sucheta Srivastava, Christina Curtis, Rob Tibshirani, Robert Michael Angelo, Allison Hall, Kouros Owzar, Kornelia Polyak, Carlo Maley, Jeffrey R Marks, Graham A Colditz, E Shelley Hwang, Robert B West. The Breast PreCancer Atlas DCIS genomic signatures define biology and correlate with clinical outcomes: An analysis of TBCRC 038 and RAHBT cohorts [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2021 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2021 Dec 7-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(4 Suppl):Abstract nr GS4-07.

Abstract Background: Clinical use of breast cancer risk prediction requires simplified models. We evaluate a simplified version of the validated Rosner–Colditz model and add percent mammographic density (MD) and polygenic risk score (PRS), to assess performance from ages 45–74. We validate using the Mayo Mammography Health Study (MMHS). Methods: We derived the model in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) based on: MD, 77 SNP PRS and a questionnaire score (QS; lifestyle and reproductive factors). A total of 2,799 invasive breast cancer cases were diagnosed from 1990–2000. MD (using Cumulus software) and PRS were assessed in a nested case–control study. We assess model performance using this case–control dataset and evaluate 10-year absolute breast cancer risk. The prospective MMHS validation dataset includes 21.8% of women age &lt;50, and 434 incident cases identified over 10 years of follow-up. Results: In the NHS, MD has the highest odds ratio (OR) for 10-year risk prediction: ORper SD = 1.48 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.31–1.68], followed by PRS, ORper SD = 1.37 (95% CI: 1.21–1.55) and QS, ORper SD = 1.25 (95% CI: 1.11–1.41). In MMHS, the AUC adjusted for age + MD + QS 0.650; for age + MD + QS + PRS 0.687, and the NRI was 6% in cases and 16% in controls. Conclusion: A simplified assessment of QS, MD, and PRS performs consistently to discriminate those at high 10-year breast cancer risk. Impact: This simplified model provides accurate estimation of 10-year risk of invasive breast cancer that can be used in a clinical setting to identify women who may benefit from chemopreventive intervention. See related commentary by Tehranifar et al., p. 587

Abstract Background: Persons of African ancestry (AA) experience a 1.5-2-fold risk of multiple myeloma (MM) compared to persons of European ancestry (EA). We assembled a set of MM patients with self-reported AA in order to evaluate the contribution of genetics to etiology in this high-risk group. Methods: Here we present the results of a meta-analysis of two GWAS in 1,813 cases and 8,871 controls of AA. We also conducted an admixture mapping scan to identify risk alleles associated with local ancestry, fine-mapped the 23 known susceptibility loci to find markers that could better capture MM risk in individuals of AA, and constructed a polygenic risk score (PRS) to assess the aggregated effect of known MM risk alleles. Finally, we conducted an eQTL analysis measuring gene expression in those genes harboring a risk variant in malignant plasma cells from 292 of the patients from a single site. Results: In GWAS analysis, we identified two suggestive novel loci located at 9p24.3 and 9p13.1 at P&lt;1 × 10-6, but no genome-wide significant association was noted. In admixture mapping, we observed a genome-wide significant inverse association between local AA at 2p24.1-23.1 and MM risk in AA individuals. 20 of the 23 known EA risk variants showed directional consistency and 9 replicated at P&lt;0.05 in AA individuals. In eight regions, we identified markers that better capture MM risk in persons of AA. AA individuals with a PRS in the top 10% had a 1.82-fold (95%CI: 1.56, 2.11) increased MM risk compared to those with average risk (25-75%). The strongest functional association was between the risk allele for variant rs56219066 at 5q15 and lower ELL2 expression (P= 5.1 × 10–12). Conclusion: Our study shows that common genetic variation contributes to MM risk individuals of AA. This abstract is also being presented as Poster C040. Citation Format: Zhaohui Du, Niels Weinhold, Gregory Chi Song, Kristen A. Rand, David J. Van Den Berg, Amie E. Hwang, Xin Sheng, Victor Hom, Sikander Ailawadhi, Ajay K. Nooka, Seema Singhal, Karen Pawlish, Edward Peters, Cathryn Bock, Ann Mohrbacher, Alexander Stram, Sonja I. Berndt, William J. Blot, Graham Casey, Victoria L. Stevens, Rick Kittles, Phyllis J. Goodman, W. Ryan Diver, Anselm Hennis, Barbara Nemesure, Eric A. Klein, Benjamin A. Rybicki, Janet L. Stanford, John S. Witte, Lisa Signorello, Esther M. John, Leslie Bernstein, Antoinette Stroup, Owen W. Stephens, Maurizio Zangari, Frits Van Rhee, Andrew Olshan, Wei Zheng, Jennifer J. Hu, Regina Ziegler, Sarah J. Nyante, Sue Ann Ingles, Michael Press, John David Carpten, Stephen Chanock, Jayesh Mehta, Graham A Colditz, Jeffrey Wolf, Thomas G. Martin, Michael Tomasson, Mark A. Fiala, Howard Terebelo, Nalini Janakiraman, Laurence Kolonel, Kenneth C. Anderson, Loic Le Marchand, Daniel Auclair, Brian C.-H. Chiu, Elad Ziv, Daniel Stram, Ravi Vij, Leon Bernal-Mizrachi, Gareth J. Morgan, Jeffrey A. Zonder, Carol Ann Huff, Sagar Lonial, Robert Z. Orlowski, David V. Conti, Christopher A. Haiman, Wendy Cozen. A meta-analysis of genome-wide association study and eQTL analysis of multiple myeloma among African Americans [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Twelfth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2019 Sep 20-23; San Francisco, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(6 Suppl_2):Abstract nr PR05.

Purpose: Multiple myeloma (MM) treatment has changed tremendously, with significant improvement in patient out-comes. One group with a suboptimal benefit is patients with high-risk cytogenetics, as tested by conventional karyotyping or fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Methodology for these tests has been published, but not necessarily standardized. Methods: We address variability in the testing and reporting methodology for MM cytogenetics in the United States using the ongoing African American Multiple Myeloma Study (AAMMS). We evaluated clinical and cytogenetic data from 1,221 patients (1,161 with conventional karyotyping and 976 with FISH) tested between 1998 and 2016 across 58 laboratories nationwide. Results: Interlab and intralab variability was noted for the number of cells analyzed for karyotyping, with a significantly higher number of cells analyzed in patients in whom cytogenetics were normal (P 5.0025). For FISH testing, CD138-positive cell enrichment was used in 29.7% of patients and no enrichment in 50% of patients, whereas the remainder had unknown status. A significantly smaller number of cells was analyzed for patients in which CD138 cell enrichment was used compared with those without such enrichment (median, 50 v 200; P, .0001). A median of 7 loci probes (range, 1-16) were used for FISH testing across all laboratories, with variability in the loci probed even within a given laboratory. Chromosome 13–related abnormalities were the most frequently tested abnormality (n5956; 97.9%), and t(14;16) was the least frequently tested abnormality (n 5 119; 12.2%). Conclusions: We report significant variability in cytogenetic testing across the United States for MM, potentially leading to variability in risk stratification, with possible clinical implications and personalized treatment approaches.

Abstract Persons of African ancestry (AA) have a twofold higher risk for multiple myeloma (MM) compared with persons of European ancestry (EA). Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) support a genetic contribution to MM etiology in individuals of EA. Little is known about genetic risk factors for MM in individuals of AA. We performed a meta-analysis of 2 GWASs of MM in 1813 cases and 8871 controls and conducted an admixture mapping scan to identify risk alleles. We fine-mapped the 23 known susceptibility loci to find markers that could better capture MM risk in individuals of AA and constructed a polygenic risk score (PRS) to assess the aggregated effect of known MM risk alleles. In GWAS meta-analysis, we identified 2 suggestive novel loci located at 9p24.3 and 9p13.1 at P &lt; 1 × 10−6; however, no genome-wide significant association was noted. In admixture mapping, we observed a genome-wide significant inverse association between local AA at 2p24.1-23.1 and MM risk in AA individuals. Of the 23 known EA risk variants, 20 showed directional consistency, and 9 replicated at P &lt; .05 in AA individuals. In 8 regions, we identified markers that better capture MM risk in persons with AA. AA individuals with a PRS in the top 10% had a 1.82-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.56-2.11) increased MM risk compared with those with average risk (25%-75%). The strongest functional association was between the risk allele for variant rs56219066 at 5q15 and lower ELL2 expression (P = 5.1 × 10−12). Our study shows that common genetic variation contributes to MM risk in individuals with AA.