09/22/2025
New research led by Friends of Cancer Research shows that reductions in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) levels after treatment are associated with improved overall survival (OS) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (aNSCLC) treated with immunotherapy or chemotherapy. The analysis focused on different early ctDNA timepoints and definitions of molecular response (MR).
Read the full publication: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jitc-2025-012454.
The aggregate analysis, published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, analyzed data from four randomized clinical trials involving 918 patients treated with anti-PD(L)1 therapy (with or without chemotherapy) or chemotherapy alone.
In patients receiving immunotherapy, ctDNA reductions at two early timepoints (i.e., up to 7 weeks and 7-13 weeks after treatment initiation) showed significant associations with improved OS across all MR thresholds (i.e., 50% decrease, 90% decrease, and 100% clearance). Among those treated with chemotherapy alone, these associations were more pronounced when assessing the 7–13-week timepoint. The majority of patients had the same category of molecular response at both timepoints.
These findings support a growing body of evidence from Friends’ ctMoniTR Project. With additional studies planned, these findings bring us closer to a reliable early indicator of treatment efficacy, potentially transforming how we evaluate cancer therapies and accelerate drug development timelines.
Thank you to the authors: Hillary Andrews, Nevine Zariffa, Katherine (Katie) Nishimura, Yu (Yulia) Deng, Megan Eisele, Joe Ensor, Carin R. Espenschied, David Fabrizio, Emily Goren, Vincent Haddad, Minetta Liu, Dimple Modi, Achim Moesta, Katie Quinn, Adam Rosenthal, Diana Merino Vega, Wei Zou, Antje Hoering, Mark Stewart, Jeff Allen.
