Actionability Assertions

Gene Condition (MONDO ID) OMIM ID Final Assertion
WT1 Wilms tumor 1 (0008679) 194070 Moderate Actionability

Actionability Assertion Rationale

  • The assertion was changed from limited to moderate based on extrapolation from Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome and idiopathic hemihypertropy case series. Even though there is limited evidence for effectiveness of the surveillance to improve downstream outcomes, the evidence may be limited due to the rarity of the condition and the likelihood that RCTs would be considered unethical related to the community practice standard which includes surveillance.

Actionability Scores

Outcome / Intervention Pair Severity Likelihood Effectiveness Nature of Intervention Total Score
Morbidity and mortality from WT / Surveillance via abdominal ultrasound 2 3N 0N 2 7NN
View scoring key
Domain of Actionability Scoring Metric State of the Knowledgebase
Severity: What is the nature of the threat to health to an individual? 3 = Sudden death as a reasonably possible outcome
2 = Reasonable possibility of death or major morbidity
1 = Modest morbidity
0 = Minimal or no morbidity
N/A
Likelihood: What is the chance that the outcome will occur? 3 = >40% chance
2 = 5%-39% chance
1 = 1%-4% chance
0 = <1% chance
A = Substantial evidence or evidence from a high tier (tier 1)
B = Moderate evidence or evidence from a moderate tier (tier 2)
C = Minimal evidence or evidence from a lower tier (tier 3 or 4)
D = Poor evidence or evidence not provided in the report
N = Evidence based on expert contributions (tier 5)
Effectiveness: What is the effectiveness of a specific intervention in preventing or diminishing the risk of harm? 3 = Highly effective
2 = Moderately effective
1 = Minimally effective
0 = Controversial or unknown effectiveness
IN = Ineffective/No interventiona
A = Substantial evidence or evidence from a high tier (tier 1)
B = Moderate evidence or evidence from a moderate tier (tier 2)
C = Minimal evidence or evidence from a lower tier (tier 3 or 4)
D = Poor evidence or evidence not provided in the report
N = Evidence based on expert contributions (tier 5)
Nature of intervention: How risky, medically burdensome, or intensive is the intervention? 3 = Low risk, or medically acceptable and low intensity
2 = Moderate risk, moderately acceptable or intensive
1 = Greater risk, less acceptable and substantial intensity
0 = High risk, poorly acceptable or intensive
N/A
a Do not score the remaining categories

Prevalence of the Genetic Condition

Wilms tumor (WT) is the most common kidney cancer in childhood, with a prevalence of one in 10,000 children. In 10%-15% of individuals with WT, the cause is considered to be a germline pathogenic variant or an epigenetic alteration occurring early during embryogenesis. These may or may not be associated with a known congenital malformation syndrome or hereditary cancer syndrome.
View Citations

Deng C, et al. (2016) PMID: 26892980, (2005) URL: rarediseases.org., Nephroblastoma. Orphanet encyclopedia, ORPHA: 654., JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Clinical Features (Signs / symptoms)

WT is a complex embryonal tumor with conventional triphasic histology (blastemic, epithelial, and stromal components). Nephrogenic rests, benign foci of embryonal kidney cells that persist abnormally into postnatal life, are considered to be WT precursors. Pathogenic variants may predispose to nephrogenic rests, while additional pathogenic variants transform nephrogenic rests into a WT. WT usually presents as an abdominal mass in an otherwise apparently healthy child. Abdominal pain, fever, anemia, hematuria, and hypertension are seen in 22% - 35% of affected children.WT1 deletions are also associated with WAGR syndrome (WT, aniridia, genital anomalies, retardation), which is characterized by WT, aniridia, hemihypertrophy, genitourinary abnormalities, ambiguous genitalia, gonadoblastoma, and intellectual disability. However, this report will focus on WT1-related WT and not other outcomes associated with pathogenic variants of WT1 or larger deletions that include WT1.
View Citations

(2005) URL: rarediseases.org., Nephroblastoma. Orphanet encyclopedia, ORPHA: 654., JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Natural History (Important subgroups & survival / recovery)

Individuals with germline WT1 pathogenic variants are more likely to have bilateral or multicentric tumors and to develop tumors at an early age. The median age of diagnosis is between 3 and 4 years and both kidneys are affected in ~5% of children. Significantly more females than males have the bilateral disease. Adult forms are very rare. In the majority of cases, the prognosis is favorable with a survival rate of over 90%.
View Citations

Deng C, et al. (2016) PMID: 26892980, (2005) URL: rarediseases.org., Nephroblastoma. Orphanet encyclopedia, ORPHA: 654., JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Description of sources of evidence:

Tier 1: Evidence from a systematic review or a meta-analysis or clinical practice guideline clearly based on a systematic review.
Tier 2: Evidence from clinical practice guidelines or broad-based expert consensus with non-systematic evidence review.
Tier 3: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with primary literature cited.
Tier 4: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with no citations to primary data sources.
Tier 5: Evidence from a non-systematically identified source.

Mode of Inheritance

Autosomal Dominant
View Citations

JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Prevalence of Genetic Variants

1-2 in 1000
A recent meta-analysis revealed a pooled prevalence for WT1 variants in WT to be 0.141 (95% CI: 0.104-0.178). Information on the prevalence of WT1 variants in the general population was not available.
Tier 1 View Citations

Kaneko Y, et al. (2015) PMID: 25688735

Penetrance (Includes any high-risk racial or ethnic subgroups)

Unknown
WT1 germline variants have reduced penetrance.
Tier 3 View Citations

JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

>= 40 %
Tier 5 View Citations

Kaneko Y, et al. (2015) PMID: 25688735

Relative Risk (Includes any high-risk racial or ethnic subgroups)

Unknown
No information on relative risk is available.

Expressivity

WT1 germline variants have variable expressivity.
Tier 3 View Citations

JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Description of sources of evidence:

Tier 1: Evidence from a systematic review or a meta-analysis or clinical practice guideline clearly based on a systematic review.
Tier 2: Evidence from clinical practice guidelines or broad-based expert consensus with non-systematic evidence review.
Tier 3: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with primary literature cited.
Tier 4: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with no citations to primary data sources.
Tier 5: Evidence from a non-systematically identified source.

Patient Management

There are no specific recommendations for management of WT associated with a WT1 pathogenic variant.
Tier 5 View Citations

Clericuzio C, et al. (2011) PMID: 21224893

However, two small studies have assessed nephron-sparing surgery (NSS) in children with WT. A retrospective review of 8 children (aged 7 to 108 months) with syndromes predisposing to WT (Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, isolated hemihyperplasia, WAGR syndrome, and isolated 11p13 deletion) who underwent nephrectomy for unilateral tumors during a 10-year period was conducted with NSS performed in 6 and radical nephrectomies in 2. After a mean follow up of 36 months (range 6 to 72) no recurrences were documented and all children had normal creatinine levels. A second retrospective study of 18 children with bilateral WT at mean age 2.28±1.12 years successfully underwent unilateral or bilateral NSS during a 15-year period. The 4-year event-free survival and overall survival rates were 68.18 and 85.56%, respectively. In univariable analysis, tumor histology (p=0.0028) and disease stage (p=0.0303) appeared significantly associated with overall survival.
Tier 5 View Citations

Clericuzio C, et al. (2011) PMID: 21224893, Romao RL, et al. (2012) PMID: 22910237, Tan XH, et al. (2018) PMID: 29368077

Surveillance

The goal of surveillance in individuals with a genetic predisposition to WT is to

detect tumors while they are low-stage and require less treatment compared to advanced-stage tumors. Surveillance is not a one-time event and should continue through the period of risk. WTs can double in size every week, leading to the recommendation that evaluation with abdominal ultrasound be performed every 3-4 months, with and no less frequently than 3 times a year, until age five years. Even at this frequency, occasional tumors may present clinically between scans and families should be made aware of this. However, there is no evidence to suggest that such tumors have a worse outcome.
Tier 3 View Citations

JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294, Scott RH, et al. (2006) PMID: 16857697, Scott, Richard H., Rahman, Nazneen. (2014) URL: www.springer.com.

No evidence was found on the effectiveness of surveillance in children with WT due to WT1 pathogenic variants. In addition, there is no clear evidence that surveillance results in a significant decrease in mortality or tumor stage generally. However, tumors detected by surveillance would be anticipated to be on average smaller than tumors that present clinically. There have been three small retrospective evaluations of WT surveillance published, only one of which reported a significant difference in stage distribution between screened and unscreened individuals. This report was a case series of children with Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome and idiopathic hemihypertropy, where 0/12 screened children with WT had late-stage disease and 25/59 (42%) of unscreened children had late-stage WT (p<0.003). In addition, in Germany, where abdominal ultrasound in children is common and 10% of WT are diagnosed prior to symptoms, there are some data to suggest that asymptomatic tumors are of lower stage than those present due to clinical symptoms.
Tier 5 View Citations

Scott, Richard H., Rahman, Nazneen. (2014) URL: www.springer.com., Choyke PL, et al. (1999) PMID: 10064187

Circumstances to Avoid

No circumstances to avoid have been identified.

Description of sources of evidence:

Tier 1: Evidence from a systematic review or a meta-analysis or clinical practice guideline clearly based on a systematic review.
Tier 2: Evidence from clinical practice guidelines or broad-based expert consensus with non-systematic evidence review.
Tier 3: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with primary literature cited.
Tier 4: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with no citations to primary data sources.
Tier 5: Evidence from a non-systematically identified source.

Nature of Intervention

Because surveillance is associated with economic and psychosocial costs including anxiety associated with exams, and false-positive results leading to unnecessary interventions, the decision to pursue surveillance requires careful consideration.
Context: Pediatric
View Citations

JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Chance to Escape Clinical Detection

Most cases of WT present prior to age 5 and have no apparent symptoms in the early stages. Signs and symptoms that do present are non-specific and could also be due to a variety of other disorders. Early detection is important to detect the tumor at an early stage.
Context: Pediatric
Tier 3 View Citations

(2005) URL: rarediseases.org., JS Dome, et al. (2003) NCBI: NBK1294

Description of sources of evidence:

Tier 1: Evidence from a systematic review or a meta-analysis or clinical practice guideline clearly based on a systematic review.
Tier 2: Evidence from clinical practice guidelines or broad-based expert consensus with non-systematic evidence review.
Tier 3: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with primary literature cited.
Tier 4: Evidence from another source with non-systematic review of evidence with no citations to primary data sources.
Tier 5: Evidence from a non-systematically identified source.
Gene Condition Associations
OMIM Identifier Primary MONDO Identifier Additional MONDO Identifiers
WT1 194070 0008679

References List

Choyke PL, Siegel MJ, Craft AW, Green DM, DeBaun MR. (1999) Screening for Wilms tumor in children with Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome or idiopathic hemihypertrophy. Medical and pediatric oncology. 32(3):196-200.

Clericuzio C, Hingorani M, Crolla JA, van Heyningen V, Verloes A. (2011) Clinical utility gene card for: WAGR syndrome. European journal of human genetics : EJHG. 19(4).

Deng C, Dai R, Li X, Liu F. (2016) Genetic variation frequencies in Wilms' tumor: A meta-analysis and systematic review. Cancer science. 107(5):690-9.

JS Dome, V Huff. Wilms Tumor Predisposition. (2003) [Updated Oct 20 2016]. In: MP Adam, HH Ardinger, RA Pagon, et al., editors. GeneReviews® [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2026. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1294/

Kaneko Y, Okita H, Haruta M, Arai Y, Oue T, Tanaka Y, Horie H, Hinotsu S, Koshinaga T, Yoneda A, Ohtsuka Y, Taguchi T, Fukuzawa M. (2015) A high incidence of WT1 abnormality in bilateral Wilms tumours in Japan, and the penetrance rates in children with WT1 germline mutation. British journal of cancer. 112(6):1121-33.

Romao RL, Pippi Salle JL, Shuman C, Weksberg R, Figueroa V, Weber B, Bagli DJ, Farhat WA, Grant R, Gerstle JT, Lorenzo AJ. (2012) Nephron sparing surgery for unilateral Wilms tumor in children with predisposing syndromes: single center experience over 10 years. The Journal of urology. 188(4 Suppl):1493-8.

Scott RH, Walker L, Olsen OE, Levitt G, Kenney I, Maher E, Owens CM, Pritchard-Jones K, Craft A, Rahman N. (2006) Surveillance for Wilms tumour in at-risk children: pragmatic recommendations for best practice. Archives of disease in childhood. 91(12):995-9.

Scott, Richard H., Rahman, Nazneen. Genetic Predisposition to Wilms Tumor. Renal Tumors of Childhood: Biology and Therapy (2014) Accessed: 2018-06-27. URL: https://www.springer.com/us/book/9783662440025

Tan XH, Zhang DY, Liu X, Lin T, He DW, Li XL, Wei GH. (2018) Retrospective analysis to determine outcomes of patients with bilateral Wilms tumor undergoing nephron sparing surgery: 15-year tertiary single-institution experience. Pediatric surgery international. 34(4):427-433.

Wilms' Tumor. National Organization for Rare Disorders Publisher: National Organization of Rare Diseases (2005) Accessed: 2018-06-25. URL: https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/wilms-tumor

Early Rule-Out Summary

This topic passed the early rule out stage

Findings of Early Rule-Out Assessment

  1. Is there a qualifying resource, such as a practice guideline or systematic review, for the genetic condition?
  2. Does the practice guideline or systematic review indicate that the result is actionable in one or more of the following ways?
  3. a. Patient Management

    b. Surveillance or Screening

    c. Circumstances to Avoid

  4. Is there an intervention that is initiated during childhood (<18 years of age) in an undiagnosed child with the genetic condition?
  5. Does the disease present outside of the neonatal period?
  6. Is this condition an important health problem?
  7. Is there at least on known pathogenic variant with at least moderate penetrance (≥40%) or moderate relative risk (≥2) in any population?