Absence of H3F3A Mutation in a Subset of Malignant Giant Cell Tumor of Bone

Giant cell tumor of bone typically involves the epiphysis of the long bones of skeletally mature patients. It is genetically characterized by highly recurrent and specific mutations of the H3F3A gene, which encodes histone H3.3. The most common mutation H3F3A G34W can readily be detected by a recently developed mutation-specific antibody. Giant cell tumor of bone rarely transforms to a sarcoma (malignant giant cell tumor of bone), which has not been genetically characterized in detail. We studied seven clinicopathologically defined malignant giant cell tumors, as well as two H3F3A-mutant bone sarcomas without giant cell tumor histology using a combination of clinicopathological, immunohistochemical, and molecular methods (Sanger sequencing + pyrosequencing or next generation sequencing). The cases included five men and four women, with a median age at initial diagnosis of 27 years. The two H3F3A G34W-positive sarcomas without giant cell tumor histology involved the subarticular epiphyseal sites, suggesting relatedness with giant cell tumor of bone. In two of the seven clinicopathologically defined malignant giant cell tumor cases, the sarcoma tissue showed the H3F3A G34W mutation. However, in the remaining five cases, in contrast to their associated H3F3A G34W-mutant giant cell tumor, the sarcoma lacked the H3F3A G34W mutation, either entirely or sub-clonally in the samples tested. This discordant mutation status was confirmed in all instances by immunohistochemistry and sequencing. A FISH analysis suggested that the absence of the H3F3A G34W mutation may be related to deletion of the H3F3A gene. Therefore, we have demonstrated that H3F3A G34W mutation, a critical driver in giant cell tumor, is absent in a subset of malignant giant cell tumor of bone. This novel recurrent phenomenon has potential biological and diagnostic implications, and further study is required to better characterize this progression pathway and understand its mechanism.