Blood-tested DNA fragment: Metastasis.

A blood test that monitors the level of DNA fragments of dead cancer cells in the blood can better track the severity and possible spread of metastatic melanoma than current standard tests.
standard tests have been widely used for decades to inform treatment decisions and measure levels of lactic acid dehydrogenase (LDH) in the blood.
the level of enzymes tends to soar as tumors grow wild, but we know that other diseases and biological functions also raise their levels.
defines the clinical characteristics of local recurrence as an incision scar or a recurrence of melanoma in or adjacent areas of the implant, with in situ components.
scientists at New York University School of Medicine and colleagues looked at levels of circulating tumor DNA, where cells break apart after they die and debris is discharged into the bloodstream.
they examined 31 metastatic melanoma patients who were not fit for surgery over a three-year period.
all patients have one of the two most common genetic mutations associated with fatal skin cancer -- B-Raf primary cancer gene serine/suline protein kinase (BRAF) or neuroblastoma RAS virus (V-Ras) primary cancer gene homologous (NRAS).
all patients were treated for ctDNA and LDH blood tests, and most had blood tests before treatment.
took the results of 30 melanoma-free people to count the results as a normal blood ctDNA level.
determine the level of ctDNA with a drop of digital PCR (ddPCR) determination.
patients with samples before treatment began, 12/15 patients (80%) had elevated ctDNA levels and 6/20 patients (30%) had elevated LDH levels.
in patients with a solid tumor response assessment criterion (RECIST) score greater than 5 cm prior to treatment, 5/7 patients (71%) had elevated ctDNA levels and 1/13 patients (8%) had elevated LDH levels.
, 13 (81%) of 16 non-RECIST diseases had elevated ctDNA levels, including 10 of 12 new brain metastases (83%).
on the other hand, 8 (50%) of LDH levels in 16 non-RECIST diseases increased, including 6 of 12 new brain metastases (50%).
the study was published in the journal Molecular Oncology. "Our results show that circulating tumor DNA is an excellent blood test for estimating and tracking the progression of metastatic melanoma," said senior author Dr David Polsky of the
.
we need blood tests that track the progression of potential diseases, because blood tests can reflect what is happening throughout the body, and scans don't always show the whole body.
" Source: Decoding Medicine.