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Published online: 2024-12-16

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The phenomenon of the BRAF and TERTp mutational duet in melanoma and other cancers

Abstract

The unique oncogenic duo of BRAF and TERT promoter (TERTp) variants was demonstrated to be associated with aggressiveness and poor prognosis in several different cancer types, including melanoma and thyroid cancer. It has been shown that the coexistence of BRAF and TERTp variants has a significantly more substantial impact on clinical outcomes than the presence of mutated BRAF or TERTp alone. At the same time, the co-occurrence of BRAF and TERTp variants may also be the Achilles Heel of cancer cells in the context of targeted therapies’ effectiveness. This paper aims to summarize data from tumors in which clinically significant variants in BRAF and TERTp were documented as prognostic or predictive markers.

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