Liquid Biopsies

An assay that measures circulating tumor (ct) DNA in the urine can detect the early acquisition of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) resistance mutations in patients with metastatic lung adenocarcinoma.

Veena Singh, MD, senior vice president and senior medical director, Biocept, Inc., discusses the clinical validation and utility of a liquid biopsy in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and ctDNA to analyze EGFR, ALK and ROS status.

Low-frequency KRAS mutations are present in urine cell-free DNA in about 80% of patients with advanced cancers and BRAF V600E mutations.

Scott Eggener, MD, associate professor of surgery, co-director, Prostate Cancer Program, director, Transitional and Outcomes Research, Section of Urology, The University of Chicago Medicine, discusses screening for prostate cancer.

Two different types of liquid biopsies—plasma and urine—can detect the number of copies of the KRAS mutation in circulating DNA in patients with colorectal cancer who have resectable liver metastases with near 100% concordance with tissue biopsies, according to a pilot study presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

The availability of mutation-specific treatments and an increasing understanding of potential resistance mechanisms have provided immense opportunities for research and development of new therapies in lung cancer.

Abnormal driver mutations contribute to tumor progression and have been prime targets for many therapeutic studies in oncology; however, researchers are focusing more and more on the less-studied passenger mutations and their role in tumor progression.

The definition of liquid biopsy has expanded to include the collection of cfDNA, along with various species of cell-free RNA and exosomes, all of which are capable of providing information on the disease status of cancer patients.

Comparable test results were shown with both urine and plasma molecular assays in a blinded, retrospective study.

In many cases, prostate cancer grows slowly and causes few symptoms; thus, many men remain unaware that they have the disease.

During a retrospective study of 182 patients with nonresectable pancreatic cancer, a negative association was found between baseline circulating tumor (ct)DNA KRAS counts in plasma and overall survival (OS), which indicates that patients with lower KRAS burden in ctDNA survive longer.

Researchers for Caris Life Sciences have used the company's proprietary tumor profiling platform to identify biomarkers in GIST that may be used to identify more effective therapeutic regimens for individuals with TKI-resistant GIST.

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) and Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) are characterized by a high frequency of BRAFV600E mutations, which are responsive to treatment with BRAF inhibitors such as vemurafenib.

Early diagnosis of lung cancer is crucial, because surgery is curative only in the early stages. However, by the time most patients experience symptoms, the cancer has already progressed beyond the point of successful surgery.

The development of drug resistance in cancer cells presents a major obstacle to cancer treatments of all types, including small molecule inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, and hormone therapy.

A “nano-cocoon” DNA drug delivery vehicle may offer several advantages over other nanotechnology-based delivery systems, according to new research.

A series of papers have been published in the journal Nature in which researchers conducted detailed comparisons of the worm, fly, and human genomes using data from the ENCODE and modENCODE projects.

A study using next-generation sequencing showed that genetic testing limited to BRCA1/2 mutations would have missed 29% of mutations that carry hereditary risk of ovarian cancer.

Raoul S. Concepcion, MD, FACS, Urology Associates P.C., discusses the potential for the 4Kscore test as a predictor of high-grade prostate cancer.

Urinary cell-free DNA analysis had near-100% accuracy for detecting BRAF mutations associated with histiocytic disease, according to a small clinical study reported at the 2014 ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago.

Mutational analysis is emerging as a powerful tool in oncology; from the identification and validation of a tumor-specific genetic lesion, to the development of therapeutic agents, to the subsequent, longitudinal assessment of acquired mutations.

The FDA has approved the radioactive diagnostic imaging agent Lymphoseek injection to guide sentinel lymph node biopsy in patients with cancer of the head and neck.

E. David Crawford, MD, professor, Urologic and Radiation Oncology, head, Section of Urologic Oncology, University of Colorado at Denver, discusses rebiopsying for prostate cancer.

The FDA’s Molecular and Clinical Genetics advisory committee has unanimously supported the safety, efficacy, and positive risk-benefit profile of the noninvasive stool-based DNA test Cologuard in a 10-0 vote.

Boris Kuvshinoff II, MD, MBA, associate professor, Division of Gastrointestinal/Endocrine Surgery, Department of Surgical Oncology, director, Liver and Pancreas Tumor Center, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, discusses microwave ablation therapy for the treatment of liver cancer.