Doctors may soon be able to detect returning liver cancer earlier and with less stress for patients, thanks to a personalized blood test known as the circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) test.
This test looks for tiny pieces of cancer DNA floating in the bloodstream and may help doctors find cancer before it shows up on scans.
A new study from Houston Methodist, published in the Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology, offers promising results. Led by Dr. Maen Abdelrahim, the study followed 38 people who had received liver transplants due to cancer. These patients received regular ctDNA blood tests along with traditional monitoring methods like imaging scans and tumor marker tests.
The goal was to see if the blood test could help detect cancer coming back earlier than the standard methods. The team collected and analyzed more than 720 blood samples, making this the largest study of its kind in the United States.
“Liver cancer has a high risk of coming back even after a transplant,” said Dr. Abdelrahim, director of the Cockrell Center for Advanced Therapeutics and chief of GI Medical Oncology at Houston Methodist. “If we can catch it early, we can give patients a better chance at survival.”
During the study period, cancer came back in six of the patients. In three of those cases, the ctDNA test also showed a positive result, confirming the return of the cancer. The other three cases had results that were either negative or couldn’t be processed.
However, importantly, the test showed 100% specificity—meaning it did not produce any false alarms in patients who were cancer-free.
This is especially important in the post-transplant setting, where avoiding unnecessary procedures is critical. Many transplant recipients are already dealing with complicated recovery and immune system issues. A blood test that can reduce the need for biopsies or extra scans would be a big improvement in care.
Liver cancer is a major global health issue. According to the American Cancer Society, over 800,000 people are diagnosed each year, and more than 700,000 die from it. This makes it one of the deadliest cancers worldwide. Finding better ways to monitor patients after treatment is crucial to improving these numbers.
The ctDNA test is personalized. That means it is tailored to look for specific genetic changes found in each patient’s original tumor. These changes act like a fingerprint for the cancer. If any matching DNA fragments appear in the blood later on, it can suggest the cancer has returned.
While the results are exciting, the researchers caution that more studies are needed. This was the first forward-looking study focused on this type of testing in liver transplant patients. They hope other scientists will build on this work to learn more about how reliable and useful ctDNA testing can be before it becomes a standard part of care.
Still, the findings are a hopeful sign. If ctDNA tests can become more widely available and proven to work, patients may have an easier, faster, and more accurate way to stay ahead of cancer recurrence—possibly leading to longer, healthier lives.
If you care about liver health, please read studies about a diet that can treat fatty liver disease and obesity, and coffee drinkers may halve their risk of liver cancer.
For more information about liver health, please see recent studies that anti-inflammatory diet could help prevent fatty liver disease, and results showing vitamin D could help prevent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
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