Lack of BRAF mutation in primary uveal melanoma

PURPOSE. BRAF T1796A activating mutations have been found in a high proportion of cutaneous melanomas, cutaneous nevi, and papillary thyroid carcinoma and in a small fraction of other cancers. This study was designed to investigate the incidence of BRAF T1796A mutation in uveal melanoma. METHODS. Twenty-nine formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded posterior uveal melanomas were included in the study. DNA was extracted from the paraffin sections followed by PCR amplification of exon 15 and detection of the common BRAF missense mutation (T→A transversion at nucleotide 1796) using restriction enzyme analysis. RESULTS. Although positive cutaneous melanoma control cell lines harbored the T1796A BRAF mutation, none of the 29 uveal melanomas harbored the mutation. CONCLUSIONS. These data suggest that BRAF T1796A activating mutation is not common in primary uveal melanoma. These findings are in accord with known differences in tumorigenesis between uveal and cutaneous melanomas.