Dr. Hudson on Repeat Molecular Testing in Relapsed/Refractory NSCLC

Kathryn E. Hudson, MD, hematologist and oncologist, director, Survivorship for Texas Oncology, Texas Oncology, discusses performing repeat biopsies on patients with relapsed/refractory non—small cell lung cancer.

Repeat biopsies need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, explains Hudson. For example, performing a biopsy would be helpful if a patient’s tumor is undergenotyped or not genotyped at all. Additionally, sometimes tumors undergo clonal evolution and will acquire new mutations over time.

It is important to understand a tumor’s mutations at the time of progression, making repeat testing a possibility for some patients, says Hudson. For patients who do not have enough tissue or would be put at risk by having more tissue collected, liquid biopsies provide an overarching understanding of the tumor through a blood test, concludes Hudson.