Prenatal Chemotherapy and Its Impact on the Genome of Fetal Hematopoiesis

The genotoxic impact of cancer chemotherapy administered during pregnancy on neonatal hematopoietic cells remains largely unknown. In this study, Struys and colleagues demonstrate that prenatal chemotherapy exposure leads to an increased somatic mutational burden in neonatal hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells, characterized by distinct mutational signatures, revealing a previously unrecognized consequence of in utero chemotherapy on fetal hematopoiesis and underscoring the need for further research to assess its long-term implications and potential risks. See related article by Struys et al., p. 903.