Comprehensive Molecular Profiling of Pediatric Meningioma

Meningiomas are the most common tumors occurring in the brain and spine. Pediatric meningiomas, however, are extremely rare tumors and are often of the most aggressive form. Furthermore, a majority of these tumors are associated with a well-described genetic disorder, neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2). The mechanisms involved in NF2 driven meningiomas is well described, but there are many other forms of meningioma whose genetic drivers are not yet well understood, including gene fusions. A fusion gene is a gene made up of two previously independent genes. An example of such a fusion is a YAP1-FAM118B fusion recently located in a pediatric meningioma patient enrolled in cancer protocol at Nationwide Children’s Hospital (NCH). Using invaluable data from the Pediatric Brain Tumor Atlas, researchers will compare YAP1 fusion meningioma to pediatric meningioma driven by other genetic drivers, including NF2, AKT1, TRAF7, and SMO in an effort to identify opportunities for new therapies.