MS 15.03 Molecular Testing Using Blood (Liquid Biopsy)

Abstract

Tumor biopsies are the ‘gold standard’ with which to interrogate a patient’s tumor biology and assess biomarkers useful for treatment decision making. However, for longitudinal monitoring of disease in certain cancer types (e.g. lung) and particularly in patients with multiple metastatic lesions), serial biopsies may not be readily acquired and easily repeatable and a less invasive tumor sample is required. Liquid biopsies are beginning to gain acceptance as a surrogate for tumor profiling and in NSCLC, regulatory approval has been given for EGFR mutation testing in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) where biopsies are not available.