Precision medicine in oncology focuses on identifying which therapies are most effective for each patient based on genetic characterization of the cancer. Traditional chemotherapy is cytotoxic and destroys all cells that are rapidly dividing. The foundation of precision medicine is targeted therapies and selecting patients who will benefit most from these therapies. One of the newest aspects of precision medicine is liquid biopsy. A liquid biopsy includes analysis of circulating tumor cells, cell-free nucleic acid, or exosomes obtained from a peripheral blood draw. These can be studied individually or in combination and collected serially, providing real-time information as a patient's cancer changes.
Keywords: Cell-free nucleic acid (cfNA); Circulating tumor cell (CTC); Exosomes; Extracellular vesicle (EV); Liquid biopsy; Targeted therapy.
Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.