A droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) ESR1 circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) assay could support targeted therapies and treatment monitoring by providing sensitive, quantitative detection of ESR1 mutations in plasma. Incorporating multiple prevalent variants may help predict resistance to endocrine therapy and guide selection of targeted drugs.
A highly multiplexed liquid biopsy assay on systems such as the QX600 ddPCR could enable non‑invasive, near‑real‑time monitoring of tumor evolution and inform timely treatment switches to more effective options, potentially improving patient outcomes.
The QX600 ddPCR system is for research use only and not for diagnostic purposes.
Circulating nucleic acids and liquid biopsies are expected to expand in the diagnostic space after significant gains over the past decade, with applications projected to accelerate.
Molecular detection is moving beyond single nucleotide variants to cover more complex alterations, including copy number amplifications, deletions, and gene fusions, including RNA variants.
Future approaches are likely to adopt multiomic strategies that combine ctDNA with circulating tumor cells, exosomes, fragmentomics and methylation markers. Protein and RNA biomarkers, such as fusion transcripts and microRNAs, are expected to be incorporated into comprehensive signatures.
Advances in scaling technologies, including miniaturization through microfluidics and nanotechnology, should make assays more sensitive and cost‑effective.
Together, these developments aim to integrate circulating biomarkers with existing blood and tissue markers to enable earlier cancer detection and near‑real‑time monitoring of treatment response.
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