Liu Ming, Mu Tianhao, Gu Jia, Xu Mingyan, Chen Shifu
HaploX Biotechnology, Shenzhen, China.
Faculty of Data Science, City University of Macau, Macau, China.
Cancer Rep (Hoboken). 2025 Mar;8(3):e70167. doi: 10.1002/cnr2.70167.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a significant health concern in the world. The existing standard of care guidelines for CRC surveillance fall short of effectively and timely detecting recurrence or metastasis.
In recent years, circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has emerged as a promising material for minimal residual disease (MRD) detection. In this article, we provide an exhaustive review of the methods utilized for MRD detection via ctDNA, present evidence supporting the potential of ctDNA MRD as a valuable biomarker in clinical applications, and engage in a discussion regarding ongoing ctDNA MRD-based clinical trials in CRC. Finally, we offer insights into future prospects of ctDNA-based MRD methodological advancements and clinical research.
It is foreseeable that more sensitive, flexible, and economical MRD detection methods will emerge with the deeper research on cell-free DNA (cfDNA) genomics, fragmentomics, methylomes, and nucleosome imprinting. At the same time, MRD-guided intervention studies will evolve for revolutionizing the treatment paradigm of CRC.
结直肠癌（CRC）仍是全球重大的健康问题。现有的CRC监测护理标准指南在有效且及时地检测复发或转移方面存在不足。
近年来，循环肿瘤DNA（ctDNA）已成为用于检测微小残留病（MRD）的一种有前景的材料。在本文中，我们对通过ctDNA进行MRD检测所使用的方法进行了详尽综述，展示了支持ctDNA MRD作为临床应用中有价值生物标志物潜力的证据，并对正在进行的基于ctDNA MRD的CRC临床试验展开了讨论。最后，我们对基于ctDNA的MRD方法学进展和临床研究的未来前景提出了见解。
可以预见，随着对游离DNA（cfDNA）基因组学、片段组学、甲基化组和核小体印记的深入研究，将会出现更灵敏、灵活且经济的MRD检测方法。同时，MRD引导的干预研究将不断发展，以彻底改变CRC的治疗模式。
