NSCLC: Cell-free RNA beneficial for early detection and prognosi

Key clinical point: Circulating cell-free RNA (cfRNA) of the candidate transcript MORF4L2 demonstrates very good sensitivity and specificity for distinguishing patients with non—small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) from healthy individuals.

Major finding: A greater concentration of MORF4L2 cfRNA was seen in patients with NSCLC compared with healthy donors (P < .0001). A cutoff value of 537.5 copies/mL of plasma was useful in distinguishing patients with NSCLC from healthy donors with very good sensitivity (0.73; 95% CI 0.61-0.82) and specificity (0.87; 95% CI 0.73-0.96). Low vs high levels of MORF4L2 cfRNA at baseline were associated with a better overall survival (hazard ratio 0.25; P  =  .009).

Study details: The data come from a cohort study of 41 patients with stage IV NSCLC, 38 patients with early-stage (stage I-III) NSCLC, and 39 healthy blood donors.

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Disclosures: This study was supported by the European Transcan-2 project CEVIR (Cancer EVolution and Identification of Relapse-initiating cells) and the German Cancer Consortium. M Metzenmacher, JT Siveke, and M Schuler reported ties with ≥1 pharmaceutical companies. The other authors reported no conflicts of interest.

Source: Metzenmacher M et al. The clinical utility of cfRNA for disease detection and surveillance: A proof of concept study in non-small cell lung cancer. Thorac Cancer. 2022 (Jun 16). Doi: 10.1111/1759-7714.14540