{"entity":{"id":"paper-okane-gata6-basal-like-compass-ccr-2020","kind":"paper","name":"GATA6 expression distinguishes classical and basal-like subtypes in advanced pancreatic cancer","aka":[],"tldr":"In 195 patients treated with chemotherapy for advanced pancreatic cancer, one in five had the basal-like type; those patients responded a third as often, progressed on FOLFIRINOX four times as often and lived 5.9 rather than 9.3 months, and a simple GATA6 tissue stain picked the type out.","summary":"Within COMPASS, patients proceeding to chemotherapy for advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma had biopsies RNA-sequenced. Between December 2015 and May 2019, 195 patients (95%) had enough tissue; 39 (20%) were basal-like and 156 (80%) classical. Among 157 with response data, the overall response rate was 10% in basal-like against 33% in classical (P = 0.02); in basal-like tumours treated with modified FOLFIRINOX the progression rate was 60% against 15% (P = 0.0002). Median overall survival was 9.3 months for classical against 5.9 for basal-like (hazard ratio 0.47; P = 0.0001). GATA6 expression by RNA sequencing correlated with the classifier and in situ hybridisation predicted subtype with sensitivity 89% and specificity 83%; GATA6 was prognostic in multivariate analysis. Basal-like tumours could be identified by keratin 5, were more hypoxic and enriched for a T-cell-inflamed signature.","asOf":"2026-09-24","links":[{"label":"O'Kane et al., Clin Cancer Res 2020: GATA6 and the basal-like subtype in 195 COMPASS patients","url":"https://doi.org/10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-19-3724"},{"label":"PubMed","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32156747/"}],"tags":[],"related":[],"cancers":["pancreatic","metastatic-pdac"],"sections":[],"technologies":["rna-seq"],"targets":[],"drugs":["folfirinox"],"companies":[],"institutions":["princess-margaret","oicr"],"pathways":["epigenetic-reprogramming"],"terms":["ihc"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":["clinical-cancer-research"],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"journal":"Clinical Cancer Research","year":2020,"doi":"10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-19-3724","pmid":"32156747","authors":"O'Kane GM, Grunwald BT, Jang GH, et al.","paperType":"translational","findings":["Basal-like 20% of 195; response 10% versus 33%; FOLFIRINOX progression 60% versus 15%.","Median overall survival 5.9 versus 9.3 months (hazard ratio 0.47).","GATA6 in situ hybridisation: sensitivity 89%, specificity 83% for the classical subtype."],"whatItMeans":"It is the number behind 'basal-like is chemoresistant' and the validation of the GATA6 stain that lets a pathology laboratory call the subtype without RNA sequencing.","caveats":["Single-programme cohort; treatment not randomised by subtype.","The T-cell-inflamed signal in basal-like tumours has not yet translated into immunotherapy benefit."],"changedPractice":false,"participants":195},"route":"/key-papers/paper-okane-gata6-basal-like-compass-ccr-2020/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"metastatic-pdac","kind":"cancer","name":"Metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma","route":"/cancers/metastatic-pdac/"},{"id":"pancreatic","kind":"cancer","name":"Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma","route":"/cancers/pancreatic/"}],"technology":[{"id":"rna-seq","kind":"technology","name":"RNA sequencing & expression profiling","route":"/technologies/rna-seq/"}],"drug":[{"id":"folfirinox","kind":"drug","name":"FOLFIRINOX / mFOLFIRINOX","route":"/drugs/folfirinox/"}],"institution":[{"id":"oicr","kind":"institution","name":"Ontario Institute for Cancer Research","route":"/institutions/oicr/"},{"id":"princess-margaret","kind":"institution","name":"Princess Margaret Cancer Centre","route":"/institutions/princess-margaret/"}],"pathway":[{"id":"epigenetic-reprogramming","kind":"pathway","name":"Epigenetic reprogramming","route":"/pathways/epigenetic-reprogramming/"}],"term":[{"id":"compass-study-pancreatic","kind":"term","name":"COMPASS: real-time sequencing of advanced pancreatic cancer for treatment selection","route":"/terms/compass-study-pancreatic/"},{"id":"gata6-classical-basal-marker","kind":"term","name":"GATA6 as the marker of classical versus basal-like pancreatic cancer","route":"/terms/gata6-classical-basal-marker/"},{"id":"ihc","kind":"term","name":"Immunohistochemistry (IHC)","route":"/terms/ihc/"}],"journal":[{"id":"clinical-cancer-research","kind":"journal","name":"Clinical Cancer Research","route":"/journals/clinical-cancer-research/"}]}}