The Past, Present, and Future of Cell-Free Nucleic Acids as a Liquid Biopsy in Precision Medicine

28 Mar 2019, at 19:30-21:30 in Coronado Island, California

Overview of Short Course

The field of cell-free nucleic acids (cf-NAs) as a liquid biopsy has evolved dramatically in the last 10-15 years and has become even more exciting nowadays. This progress has been benefiting from advancement in technologies, the accumulative understanding in human biology, and the new paradigm shift in precision medicine. In this short course, different types of cf-NA biomarkers will be introduced, including cell-free tumor DNA, RNA, and DNA methylation biomarkers. Following that, an overview of research and development approaches related to cf-NA biomarkers will be discussed, with the coverage of sample collection methods, pre-analytical variables, features of different types of analytes, and new technological tools. The concepts of analytical validity, clinical validity, and clinical utility will also be introduced during the discussion of biomarker assay development and implementation. Several successfully developed biomarker examples will be used to illustrate these concepts. New emerging trends in the field of cf-NAs will also be covered at the end of short course. In summary, although it takes a village for cf-NAs to move from the bench into the clinic, this approach is critical to the success of precision medicine.

We will explore the scientific background on circulating cell-free tumor DNA (ctDNA), pre-analytics, and clinical implementation of assays in oncology.  We will discuss cases of early detection, monitoring, initial genotyping, and markers of response. Future directions will also be discussed.

Topics Addressed

• Circulating Cell-Free DNA (cfDNA) Analysis Technologies
• Liquid Biopsies based on cfDNA
• Cancer Liquid Biopsies
• RNA, Methylation and Various Biomarker Classes
• Successfully Moving Nucleic Acid-based Liquid Biopsies into the Clinic
  

Who Should Attend

• Researchers Seeking a Deep Dive into the cfDNA Field
• Industry Participants and Business Development Executives Seeking to Understand the Technologies and Companies in the cfDNA Space