A liquid biopsy is a minimally invasive diagnostic procedure in which biomarkers of disease - circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating tumor cells (CTCs), and extracellular vesicles - are detected in the blood or other body fluids. Liquid biopsy. Unlike a conventional tissue biopsy, a liquid biopsy can be repeated several times with low risk.
Liquid biopsy is transforming cancer care by revolutionizing the early detection of the disease, treatment monitoring, and prediction of relapse. It enables clinicians to monitor the dynamic progression of tumors in real-time, and the resistance mutations can be identified before clinical manifestations occur.
Prenatal testing, organ transplantation monitoring, and neurodegenerative disease studies are also being studied using liquid biopsies. They are a cornerstone of precision medicine because of their capability to support dynamic biological alterations.
Although sensitivity and standardization are still a challenge, current progress in sequencing and bioinformatics is quickly making clinical use feasible.
MBH/PS