[HTML][HTML] Cancer diagnosis using a liquid biopsy: challenges and expectations

F Castro-Giner, S Gkountela, C Donato, I Alborelli… - Diagnostics, 2018 - mdpi.com
F Castro-Giner, S Gkountela, C Donato, I Alborelli, L Quagliata, CKY Ng, S Piscuoglio…
Diagnostics, 2018mdpi.com
The field of cancer diagnostics has recently been impacted by new and exciting
developments in the area of liquid biopsy. A liquid biopsy is a minimally invasive alternative
to surgical biopsies of solid tissues, typically achieved through the withdrawal of a blood
sample or other body fluids, allowing the interrogation of tumor-derived material including
circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) fragments that are present
at a given time point. In this short review, we discuss a few studies that summarize the state …
The field of cancer diagnostics has recently been impacted by new and exciting developments in the area of liquid biopsy. A liquid biopsy is a minimally invasive alternative to surgical biopsies of solid tissues, typically achieved through the withdrawal of a blood sample or other body fluids, allowing the interrogation of tumor-derived material including circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) fragments that are present at a given time point. In this short review, we discuss a few studies that summarize the state-of-the-art in the liquid biopsy field from a diagnostic perspective, and speculate on current challenges and expectations of implementing liquid biopsy testing for cancer diagnosis and monitoring in the clinical setting.
MDPI