Pre- and post-surgery change of EGFR mutation status in a lung squamous cell cancer patient

Background: The percentage of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations in squamous lung cancer was relatively low. The dynamic changes of EGFR mutation in peripheral blood before and after surgical resection in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) has been rarely reported.Case presentationWe report a 73-year-old woman with squamous lung cancer of the left upper lobe and EGFR exon 19 deletion (19del) was identified in biopsy and peripheral plasma separately before a surgical operation. The mass regressed remarkably after three cycles of platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy and then the patient was administered curative-intent surgery. Postoperative pathology supported the diagnosis of left upper lobe squamous cell carcinoma and EGFR 19del mutation. At the time of 40 days after surgery, EGFR 19del mutation in peripheral blood was undetectable using amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (ARMS-PCR) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) method.ConclusionsWe report, for the first time, the perioperational dynamics of EGFR mutation in a LSCC patient. EGFR 19del mutation was eliminated after surgical operation. The genetic mutation status from peripheral blood could be converted through the operation.