Circulating Tumor DNA as a Non-invasive Biomarker for Early Cancer Detection

Early detection of cancer is important for improving survival and treatment outcomes. Conventional diagnostic procedures, such as biopsies and imaging, are invasive and, in many cases, restrict early diagnosis. Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is a promising biomarker because it is a type of DNA fragment released into the blood and can be used to understand the genetic properties of the patient's cancer. This paper examines the potential of ctDNA for cancer diagnosis and evaluates the technology's sensitivity and specificity across different cancer types. We compared ctDNA levels in patients with various stages of cancer using next-generation sequencing. The findings underscore ctDNA as a reliable and efficient diagnostic tool for detecting cancers at an early stage, a less invasive and less expensive approach than traditional methods. CtDNA in clinical practice is expected to improve cancer diagnosis, thereby improving patient prognosis and enabling personalized treatment.