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Review
. 2025 Apr;17(5):369-383.
doi: 10.1080/1750743X.2025.2479426. Epub 2025 Mar 14.

Liquid biopsy for guiding breast cancer immunotherapy

Emanuela Fina  1 , Elsa Vitale  2 , Simona De Summa  3 , Gennaro Gadaleta-Caldarola  4 , Stefania Tommasi  3 , Raffaella Massafra  2 , Oronzo Brunetti  5 , Alessandro Rizzo  5
Affiliations
Review

Liquid biopsy for guiding breast cancer immunotherapy

Emanuela Fina et al. Immunotherapy. 2025 Apr.

Abstract

Liquid biopsy is a laboratory test used to detect and analyze circulating tumor cells (CTCs), circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), and other tumor-derived components, in a blood sample. In the context of breast cancer (BC), liquid biopsies hold significant promise for guiding the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors and immune-based combinations, offering real-time insights into tumor dynamics, treatment response, and resistance mechanisms. This review explores the role of liquid biopsy in BC immunotherapy, focusing on its applications, benefits, issues, and current and future research directions.

Keywords: Breast cancer; biomarkers; immune checkpoint inhibitors; immunotherapy; liquid biopsy; triple-negative breast cancer.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

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