Fluorometric Detection of Low-Abundance EGFR Exon 19 Deletion Mutation Using Tandem Gene Amplification.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are not only genetic markers for diagnosis but also biomarkers of clinical-response against tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Among the EGFR mutations, the in-frame deletion mutation in EGFR exon 19 kinase domain (EGFR exon 19-del) is the most frequent mutation, accounting for about 45% of EGFR mutations in NSCLCs. Development of sensitive method for detecting the EGFR mutation is highly required to make a better screening for drug-response in the treatment of NSCLC patients. Here, we developed a fluorometric tandem gene amplification assay for sensitive detection of low-abundance EGFR exon 19-del mutant genomic DNA. The method consists of pre-amplification with PCR, thermal cycling of ligation by