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Tumor-informed Minimal Residual Disease
Tumor-informed minimal residual disease (MRD) testing, often abbreviated as tiMRD, is a highly sensitive, personalized approach for detecting and monitoring minimal residual disease (MRD) in cancer patients. It primarily analyzes circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)—small fragments of DNA shed from tumor cells into the blood plasma. This method addresses limitations of traditional cancer staging in identifying individuals with minimal residual disease after treatment, who are at high risk of relapse. Tumor-informed assays are custom-built for each patient by typically sequencing the patient's tumor tissue to identify its unique set of somatic mutations, and then creating a personalized panel to track these specific markers in subsequent blood tests. This personalized approach is primarily applied in solid tumors—including colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, and bladder cancer—to assess recurrence risk, monitor treatment response, and potentially guide adjuvant therapy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minimal Residual Disease
Minimal residual disease (MRD), also known as molecular residual disease, is the medical condition in which small number of cancer cells persist in a patient either during or after treatment when the patient is in Remission (medicine), remission and that cannot be detected with current medical imaging or routine screening options (occult stage of cancer progression). MRD detection is strongly associated with cancer recurrence, often with a lead time of months relative to other forms of clinical evidence. The presence and quantity of MRD are significant because these residual cells can potentially multiply and cause the cancer to relapse, and therefore detecting MRD has significant clinical and Clinical diagnosis, diagnostic potential. Sensitive molecular tests, often minimal invasive and done through a liquid biopsy, are either in development or available to test for MRD. These can measure minute levels of cancer cells in tissue samples, sometimes as low as one cancer cell in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction
Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (Multiplex PCR) refers to the use of polymerase chain reaction to amplify several different DNA sequences simultaneously (as if performing many separate PCR reactions all together in one reaction). This process amplifies DNA in samples using multiple primers and a temperature-mediated DNA polymerase in a thermal cycler. The primer design for all primers pairs has to be optimized so that all primer pairs can work at the same annealing temperature during PCR. Multiplex-PCR was first described in 1988 as a method to detect deletions in the dystrophin gene. It has also been used with the steroid sulfatase gene. In 2008, multiplex-PCR was used for analysis of microsatellites and SNPs. In 2020, RT-PCR multiplex assays were designed that combined multiple gene targets from the Center for Diseases and Control in a single reaction to increase molecular testing accessibility and throughput for SARS-CoV-2 Severe acute respiratory syndrome ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Genomics
Genomics is an interdisciplinary field of molecular biology focusing on the structure, function, evolution, mapping, and editing of genomes. A genome is an organism's complete set of DNA, including all of its genes as well as its hierarchical, three-dimensional structural configuration. In contrast to genetics, which refers to the study of ''individual'' genes and their roles in inheritance, genomics aims at the collective characterization and quantification of ''all'' of an organism's genes, their interrelations and influence on the organism. Genes may direct the production of proteins with the assistance of enzymes and messenger molecules. In turn, proteins make up body structures such as organs and tissues as well as control chemical reactions and carry signals between cells. Genomics also involves the sequencing and analysis of genomes through uses of high throughput DNA sequencing and bioinformatics to assemble and analyze the function and structure of entire genomes. Advan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ónkos''), meaning "tumor", "volume" or "mass". Oncology is focused on the diagnosis of cancer in a person, therapy (e.g., surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and other modalities), monitoring of patients after treatment, palliative care of people with advanced-stage cancers, Ethics, ethical questions surrounding cancer care, Screening (medicine), screening of patients, and the study of cancer treatments through clinical research. An oncologist typically focuses on a specialty area in cancer treatment, such as surgery, Radiation therapy, radiation, gynecology, gynecologic oncology, geriatrics, geriatric oncology, pediatrics, pediatric oncology, and various organ-specific disciplines (breast, brain, liver, among others). The exp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colorectal Cancer
Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the Colon (anatomy), colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include Lower gastrointestinal bleeding, blood in the stool, a change in bowel movements, weight loss, abdominal pain and fatigue. Most colorectal cancers are due to lifestyle factors and genetic disorders. Risk factors include diet, obesity, smoking, and lack of physical activity. Dietary factors that increase the risk include red meat, processed meat, and alcohol (drug), alcohol. Another risk factor is inflammatory bowel disease, which includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Some of the inherited genetic disorders that can cause colorectal cancer include familial adenomatous polyposis and hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer; however, these represent less than 5% of cases. It typically starts as a adenoma, benign tumor, often in the form of a colorectal poly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liquid Biopsy
A liquid biopsy, also known as fluid biopsy or fluid phase biopsy, is the sampling and analysis of non-solid biological tissue, primarily blood. Like traditional biopsy, this type of technique is mainly used as a diagnostic and monitoring tool for diseases such as cancer, with the added benefit of being largely non-invasive. Liquid biopsies may also be used to validate the efficiency of a cancer treatment drug by taking multiple samples in the span of a few weeks. The technology may also prove beneficial for patients after treatment to monitor relapse. The clinical implementation of liquid biopsies is not yet widespread but is becoming standard of care in some areas. Liquid biopsy refers to the molecular analysis in biological fluids of nucleic acids, subcellular structures, especially exosomes, and, in the context of cancer, circulating tumor cells. Types There are several types of liquid biopsy methods; method selection depends on the condition that is being studied. A wid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Circulating Tumor DNA
Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is tumor-derived fragmented DNA in the bloodstream that is not associated with cells. ctDNA should not be confused with cell-free DNA ( cfDNA), a broader term which describes DNA that is freely circulating in the bloodstream, but is not necessarily of tumor origin. Because ctDNA may reflect the entire tumor genome, it has gained traction for its potential clinical utility; " liquid biopsies" in the form of blood draws may be taken at various time points to monitor tumor progression throughout the treatment regimen. Recent studies have laid the foundation for inferring gene expression from cfDNA (and ctDNA), with EPIC-seq emerging as a notable advancement. This method has substantially raised the bar for the noninvasive inference of expression levels of individual genes, thereby augmenting the assay's applicability in disease characterization, histological classification, and monitoring treatment efficacy. ctDNA originates directly from the tumor or f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tumor-agnostic Minimal Residual Disease
Tumor-agnostic minimal residual disease (MRD) testing, also referred to as tumor-naive, tumor-uninformed, or tumor-agnostic MRD (taMRD) testing, is an approach for detecting minimal residual disease (MRD) using circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis that does not require prior sequencing of a tumor tissue. Instead, these assays analyze a blood plasma sample directly using pre-designed panels targeting molecular alterations commonly found across various cancers or specific cancer types. Tumor-agnostic MRD tests are employed to detect residual cancer cells after treatment, monitor for recurrence, and assess treatment response, particularly when primary tumor tissue is unavailable or when a faster turnaround time is needed. Key approaches include fixed NGS panels and methylation-based assays. Uses Tumor-agnostic MRD assays are utilized in similar clinical contexts as tumor-informed approaches, including post-treatment surveillance, risk stratification, and monitoring therapy res ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minimal Residual Disease
Minimal residual disease (MRD), also known as molecular residual disease, is the medical condition in which small number of cancer cells persist in a patient either during or after treatment when the patient is in Remission (medicine), remission and that cannot be detected with current medical imaging or routine screening options (occult stage of cancer progression). MRD detection is strongly associated with cancer recurrence, often with a lead time of months relative to other forms of clinical evidence. The presence and quantity of MRD are significant because these residual cells can potentially multiply and cause the cancer to relapse, and therefore detecting MRD has significant clinical and Clinical diagnosis, diagnostic potential. Sensitive molecular tests, often minimal invasive and done through a liquid biopsy, are either in development or available to test for MRD. These can measure minute levels of cancer cells in tissue samples, sometimes as low as one cancer cell in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clonal Hematopoiesis
Clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential, or CHIP, is a common aging-related phenomenon in which hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) or other early blood cell progenitors contribute to the formation of a genetically distinct subpopulation of blood cells. As the name suggests, this subpopulation in the blood is characterized by a shared unique mutation in the cells' DNA; it is thought that this subpopulation is "clonally" derived from a single founding cell and is therefore made of genetic "clones" of the founder. The establishment of a clonal population may occur when a stem or progenitor cell acquires one or more somatic mutations that give it a competitive advantage in hematopoiesis over the stem/progenitor cells without these mutations. Alternatively, clonal hematopoiesis may arise without a driving mutation, through mechanisms such as neutral drift in the stem cell population. Clonal hematopoiesis may occur in people who are completely healthy but has also been found in peo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allele Frequency
Allele frequency, or gene frequency, is the relative frequency of an allele (variant of a gene) at a particular locus in a population, expressed as a fraction or percentage. Specifically, it is the fraction of all chromosomes in the population that carry that allele over the total population or sample size. Microevolution is the change in allele frequencies that occurs over time within a population. Given the following: # A particular locus on a chromosome and a given allele at that locus # A population of ''N'' individuals with ploidy ''n'', i.e. an individual carries ''n'' copies of each chromosome in their somatic cells (e.g. two chromosomes in the cells of diploid species) # The allele exists in ''i'' chromosomes in the population then the allele frequency is the fraction of all the occurrences ''i'' of that allele and the total number of chromosome copies across the population, ''i''/(''nN''). The allele frequency is distinct from the genotype frequency, although they a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
