Dr. Husain on Ongoing Research Evaluating Plasma-Based Testing in Lung Cancer

Hatim Husain, MD, medical oncologist and associate professor of medicine, Moores Cancer Center, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), discusses ongoing research efforts evaluating plasma-based testing in lung cancer.

Several studies are incorporating liquid biopsies as new end points to better understand how plasma-based testing impacts progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), says Husain. At UCSD, investigators evaluated the impact of the clearance of circulating tumor DNA on PFS and OS in patients receiving targeted therapy.

Additionally, many studies are looking at concordance among tissue- and plasma-based biopsies as well as responsiveness to targeted therapy based on plasma-based detection. One such study is evaluating the effectiveness of osimertinib (Tagrisso) in patients who were found to have an EGFR mutation via a liquid biopsy. Another is the phase II APPLE study, in which investigators are basing treatment decisions for patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC upon their resistance profile, concludes Husain.