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Updated: Jun 21, 2026
Detection of Cell-Free DNA in Blood Plasma Samples of Cancer Patients
Published on: September 9, 2020
Circulating DNA is a non-invasive prognostic factor for survival in non-small cell lung cancer
Miep A van der Drift1, Bernard E A Hol, Corné H W Klaassen
1Department of Pulmonology, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, The Netherlands. m.vanderdrift@ulc.umcn.nl
Introduction:
Circulating plasma DNA is present in a considerably higher concentration in lung cancer patients than in controls. Conflicting data are reported about circulating DNA as a prognostic factor. The aim of this study was to prospectively analyse the relationship of circulating plasma DNA with overall survival (OS) of previously untreated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.
Methods:
46 untreated NSCLC patients and 21 controls with a follow-up time of 6.5 years were analyzed. Quantification of baseline circulating plasma DNA was performed by a real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) targeting the human beta-globin gene. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with a Cox-regression analysis.
Results:
The median DNA concentration of the patients who died (87%) was significantly higher compared to the patients that survived at the end of follow-up (55ng/ml versus 23ng/ml, p=0.02). In patients with higher DNA concentration overall survival was significantly worse. In this study no relation of DNA concentration with tumour characteristics, age, gender or pulmonary inflammatory conditions was found.
Conclusion:
In this study a high circulating plasma DNA concentration at time of diagnosis in NSCLC patients was a prognostic factor for poorer survival. Circulating DNA may be used as a non-invasive biomarker to refine the prognostic profile in NSCLC patients.
