In today’s episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with Jonathan M. Gerber, MD; and Shyam A. Patel, MD, PhD, about a study they conducted investigating the use of immunohistochemistry (IHC) as a biomarker for early TP53 mutation identification in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Dr Gerber is a member of the faculty in the Department of Medicine at New York University (NYU) Grossman School of Medicine; as well as the chief clinical officer of the NYU Perlmutter Cancer Center. Dr Patel is an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School; as well as a hematologist and oncologist at the UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. 

In our exclusive interview, Drs Gerber and Patel discussed the evaluation of p53 IHC as a surrogate biomarker for TP53-mutant MDS and AML. They shared how the presence of TP53 mutations in these diseases significantly worsens prognosis, necessitating urgent treatment. They also highlighted how IHC results are available within 48 to 72 hours. Gerber and Patel explained this study's design and patient population, as well as how IHC's inverse correlation with overall survival highlights its potential as an early biomarker, though it has lower sensitivity for certain mutations.