STAG2 belongs to the cohesin complex family of genes that encode protein subunits of the cohesion complex, which regulates chromosomal segregation. STAG2 has been reported to show somatic, nonsense, frameshift and occasional missense mutations throughout the gene in 6% of cases of myelodysplasia, 10% of chronic myelomonocytic leukemia, 6% of cases of acute myeloid leukemia, and less than 5% of chronic myeloid leukemia and myeloproliferative neoplasms. Mutations of STAG2 are mostly mutually exclusive of mutations in other components of the cohesin complex. STAG2 mutation is associated with a poor prognosis in myelodysplastic syndrome (NCCN Guidelines for Myelodysplastic syndromes). STAG2 mutations are also reported to be highly specific for secondary acute myeloid leukemia, and may also be helpful in identifying a subset of elderly patients with de novo acute myeloid leukemia or therapy-related AML with worse clinical outcomes.
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