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Updated: Jul 10, 2026

An Orthotopic Bladder Cancer Model for Gene Delivery Studies
Published on: December 1, 2013
Honing the Hunt: A Comprehensive Review of Cell-free Tumor DNA to Predict Neoadjuvant Therapy Efficacy in Bladder
Caio V Suartz1, Lucas Motta Martinez2, Maurício D Cordeiro2
1Division of Urology, Institute of Cancer of São Paulo, University of São Paulo, Brazil; Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, CHU de Québec - Université Laval, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
Objective:
To provide an updated view on the role of cell-free DNA as a predictor of pathological response to neoadjuvant therapy in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer.
Methods:
A systematic review was conducted from September 2023 to October 2023. Selected studies from the MEDLINE and clinical trial databases were critically analyzed regarding the clinical efficacy of cell-free DNA as a predictive instrument after neoadjuvant therapy in bladder cancer. The methodological quality assessment was based on the QUADAS-2 tool.
Results:
In this systematic review, we analyzed 5 studies encompassing a cumulative patient cohort of 780 individuals diagnosed with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, with a median follow-up ranging from 6 to 23 months. Among these studies, 4 primarily focused on detecting and analyzing circulating tumor DNA in plasma, while 1 study uniquely utilized cell-free tumor DNA in urine samples. The diagnostic accuracy of cell-free DNA in plasma ranges from 79% to 100%, indicating a variable yet significant predictive capability. In contrast, the study utilizing urinary cell-free DNA demonstrated an accuracy of 81% in predicting treatment response post-neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
Conclusion:
Cell-free DNA is emerging as a valuable biomarker for predicting response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with muscle-invasive bladder tumors.
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