Prostate cancer is characterized by several genetic alterations which could impact prognosis and therapeutic decisions in the advanced disease. Tissue biopsy is still considered the gold standard approach for molecular characterization in prostate cancer, but it has several limitations, including the possibility of insufficient/inadequate tumor tissue to be analyzed.
Blood-based liquid biopsy is a non-invasive method to investigate tumor cell derivatives in the bloodstream, being a valid alternative to tissue biopsy for molecular characterization but also for predictive and/or prognostic purposes. In this review, we analyze the most relevant evidence in this field, focusing on clinically relevant targets such as HRD genetic alterations and also focusing on the differences between tissue and liquid biopsy in light of the data from the latest clinical trials.
Critical reviews in oncology/hematology. 2023 Dec 18 [Epub ahead of print]
Emilio Francesco Giunta, Umberto Malapelle, Antonio Russo, Ugo De Giorgi
Department of Medical Oncology, IRCCS Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori (IRST) 'Dino Amadori', Meldola (FC), Italy. Electronic address: ., Department of Public Health, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy., Department of Surgical, Oncological and Oral Sciences, Section of Medical Oncology, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy., Department of Medical Oncology, IRCCS Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori (IRST) 'Dino Amadori', Meldola (FC), Italy.
PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38122919