Liquid Biopsy Detects Lung Cancer Recurrence Months Before Imaging

Researchers at the Cancer Institute have validated a highly sensitive circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) assay that detects molecular recurrence of non-small cell lung cancer a median of 4.2 months before conventional CT imaging reveals radiological progression. The study followed 180 patients who had undergone curative-intent surgery for stage I–III NSCLC.

The assay, which tracks a personalised panel of up to 50 tumour-specific mutations per patient, achieved a sensitivity of 94% and specificity of 98% for recurrence detection. Patients whose ctDNA became positive were offered early intervention with targeted therapy or immunotherapy based on molecular profiling.

An ongoing randomised trial is now evaluating whether this ctDNA-guided early intervention approach improves overall survival compared to standard radiological surveillance.