Dr. Mikhail Fedyanin on Mutation Discordance and Liquid Biopsy in CRC

Mikhail Fedyanin, MD, PhD, Russian Academy of Medical Science, discusses mutation discordance in the primary tumor and metastases in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), as well as the benefits of liquid biopsy.

A study found that patients with mutant RAS in the primary tumor had a higher chance of a changed RAS status in metastases than patients with wild-type RAS in primary tumors. This situation is unusual, says Fedyanin, and if the discordance is confirmed, JAK inhibitor antibodies could be considered.

The study utilized liquid biopsy, which extracts circulating tumor cells, cell-free DNA, or exosomes from blood and urine. This was key to determining the study’s findings, says Fedyanin. It allowed researchers to understand how the mutational status changed throughout the study without additional invasive procedures.

Mutations can occur during treatment, when biopsies can not be performed on each metastasis Liquid biopsy allows oncologists to find the whole spectrum of mutations every time, says Fedyanin.