CIRCULATE-Japan GALAXY confirms effectiveness of liquid biopsy in predicting recurrence risk and post-operative treatment efficacy in colorectal cancer

A research group led by Dr. Takayuki Yoshino, Deputy Director, and Dr. Yoshiaki Nakamura, Chief of the International Research Promotion Office at National Cancer Center Hospital East of the National Cancer Center, along with Associate Professor Eiji Oki from Kyushu University, investigated the relationship between liquid biopsy results and cancer recurrence risk and survival time for 2,240 patients with colorectal cancer participating in the CIRCULATE-Japan GALAXY trial.

The results showed that patients with detectable circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in post-operative blood tests had a higher risk of cancer recurrence and shorter survival time compared to those without detectable ctDNA. Furthermore, it was revealed that even among patients with detectable ctDNA, those who received post-operative adjuvant chemotherapy and subsequently cleared ctDNA had a lower risk of recurrence.

These research findings scientifically demonstrate that examining ctDNA can predict the risk of colorectal cancer recurrence and survival time, aiding in treatment decision-making. This research was published in Nature Medicine on September 16, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (London time).

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For more information about this research, see "ctDNA-based molecular residual disease and survival in resectable colorectal caner," Yoshiaki Nakamura, Jun Watanabe, Naoya Akazawa, Keiji Hirata, Kozo Kataoka, Mitsuru Yokota, Kentaro Kato, Masahito Kotaka, Yoshinori Kagawa, Kun-Huei Yeh, Saori Mishima, Hiroki Yukami, Koji Ando, Masaaki Miyo, Toshihiro Misumi, Kentaro Yamazaki, Hiromichi Ebi, Kenji Okita, Atsushi Hamabe, Hiroki Sokuoka, Satoshi Kobayashi, George Laliotis, Vasily N. Aushev, Shruti Sharma, Adham Jurdi, Minetta C. Liu, Alexey Aleshin, Matthew Rabinowitz, Hideaki Bando, Hiroya Taniguchi, Ichiro Takemasa, Takeshi Kato, Daisuke Kotani, Masaki Mori, Takayuki Yoshino, Eiji Oki Physical Review Letters, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03254-6

Research-related inquiries

Eiji Oki, Associate Professor
Faculty of Medical Sciences
Contact information can also be found in the full release.