cfDNA biomarker analysis to assess risk of relapse of medulloblastoma

Researchers demonstrate ‘liquid biopsy’ analysis of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) that detects pediatric medulloblastoma relapse earlier than conventional imaging, allowing for earlier intervention to improve patient survival. Even after all signs of cancer have disappeared according to imaging, tumor cells – or small clumps of them – can remain undetected in the body after therapy ceases. These cells, known as Measurable Residual Disease (MRD), are considered a major cause of cancer relapse. So far, MRD detection has been successful in blood diseases, such as leukemia, as malignant blood cells and their biomarkers are easily accessible in the bloodstream. MRD detection therefore...