Status quo of ALK testing in lung cancer: results of an EQA scheme based on in-situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and RNA/DNA sequencing

Publication

Status quo of ALK testing in lung cancer: results of an EQA scheme based on in-situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and RNA/DNA sequencing

Journal Paper/Review - Jun 25, 2021

Jurmeister Philipp, Büttner Reinhard, Merkelbach-Bruse Sabine, Kreipe Hans, Jonigk Danny, Jochum Wolfram, Rodriguez Regulo, Dietel Manfred, Horst David, Hummel Michael, Kirchner Thomas, Neumann Jens, Vollbrecht Claudia, Jöhrens Korinna, Aust Daniela, Behnke Anke, Stenzinger Albrecht, Penzel Roland, Endris Volker, Schirmacher Peter, Fisseler-Eckhoff Annette, von Laffert Maximilian

Citation

Jurmeister P, Büttner R, Merkelbach-Bruse S, Kreipe H, Jonigk D, Jochum W, Rodriguez R, Dietel M, Horst D, Hummel M, Kirchner T, Neumann J, Vollbrecht C, Jöhrens K, Aust D, Behnke A, Stenzinger A, Penzel R, Endris V, Schirmacher P, Fisseler-Eckhoff A, von Laffert M. Status quo of ALK testing in lung cancer: results of an EQA scheme based on in-situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and RNA/DNA sequencing. Virchows Arch 2021; 479:247-255.

Type

Journal Paper/Review (English)

Journal

Virchows Arch 2021; 479

Publication Date

Jun 25, 2021

Issn Electronic

1432-2307

Pages

247-255

Brief description/objective

With this external quality assessment (EQA) scheme, we aim to investigate the diagnostic performance of the currently available methods for the detection of ALK alterations in non-small cell lung cancer on a national scale, namely, in situ hybridization (ISH), immunohistochemistry (IHC), and RNA/DNA sequencing (NGS). The EQA scheme cohort consisted of ten specimens, including four ALK positive and six ALK negative samples, which were thoroughly pretested using IHC, ISH, and RNA/DNA NGS. Unstained tumor sections were provided to the 57 participants, and the results were retrieved via an online questionnaire. ISH was used by 29, IHC by 38, and RNA/DNA sequencing by 19 participants. Twenty-eight institutions (97%) passed the ring trial using ISH, 33 (87%) by using IHC, and 18 (95%) by using NGS. The highest sensitivity and interrater agreement (Fleiss ' kappa) was observed for RNA/DNA sequencing (99%, 0.975), followed by ISH (94%, 0.898) and IHC (92%, 0.888). However, the proportion of samples that were not evaluable due to bad tissue quality was also higher for RNA/DNA sequencing (4%) compared with ISH (0.7%) and IHC (0.5%). While all three methods produced reliable results between the different institutions, the highest sensitivity and concordance were observed for RNA/DNA sequencing. These findings encourage the broad implementation of this method in routine diagnostic, although the application might be limited by technical capacity, economical restrictions, and tissue quality of formalin-fixed samples.