Liquid biopsies for early detection and monitoring of cancer: advances, challenges, and future directions

Abstract

Objective: The article offers an extensive survey of the progressions, problems, and future trends of liquid biopsies in the early discovery and surveillance of cancer. Liquid biopsies can detect signals associated with cancer by looking at biological fluids like cerebrospinal fluid, blood, or urine, making them a less invasive alternative to traditional tissue biopsies.

Methods: The review explores the molecular biology and techniques behind liquid biopsy, including circulating tumor DNA, circulatory tumor cells, and exosomes. It evaluates clinical applications of liquid biopsy across different cancer types, showing their potential for early diagnosis, monitoring disease progression, and therapy response prediction.

Results: The article identifies several critical issues with liquid biopsies, including achieving a balance between high sensitivity and specificity, standardizing protocols, addressing technological heterogeneity, and ensuring cost-effectiveness and accessibility. Also, ethical issues about informed consent, data privacy, incidental findings management, and equal testing access have been examined in this context.

Conclusion: Finally, this article sheds light on future developments in liquid biopsies, such as enhanced specificity, sensitivity, and integration with artificial intelligence methods.

Keywords: cancer monitoring; circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA); circulating tumor cells (cTCs); early detection; liquid biopsy; precision oncology.