Noninvasive detection of tumor-associated mutations from circulating cell-free DNA in hepatocellular carcinoma patients by targeted deep sequencing

Abstract

The results of our study suggest that tumor-associated mutations detected in plasma are associated with vascular invasion and might be used to predict a shorter recurrence-free survival time for HCC patients. This kind of biomarker can overcome the limitations of tumor heterogeneity. Moreover, the diagnostic performance is improved if multiple mutations in different genes are combined.