Liquid biopsy in gastrointestinal oncology: clinical applications and translational integration of ctDNA, CTCs, and sEVs.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Liquid biopsy offers a minimally invasive tool to detect actionable mutations, monitor minimal residual disease (MRD), and guide therapy in gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. We critically review the clinical utility of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating tumor cells (CTCs), and small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) across GI malignancies and propose a framework for their integration into clinical practice.

Methods

We synthesized evidence from over 200 studies, including prospective trials and translational research, to assess diagnostic accuracy, prognostic value, and clinical actionability of each biomarker type in esophageal, gastric, colorectal, pancreatic, hepatocellular, and biliary cancers.

Results

ctDNA has shown strong potential for MRD d

SUBMITTER: Palieri R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12580207 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature