Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40966846›Full record

Trial reportOral oncology2025

Cell-free DNA as a complementary marker of therapeutic futility in adenoid cystic carcinoma.

Joanna Blocka, Klothilda Lim, Hannah Stuart, Julia Frede, Nathaniel G Tadros, Caroline R M Wiggers, Glenn J Hanna, Birgit Knoechel, Jens G Lohr

Abstract readClinical Trial, Phase II
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Oral oncology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Joanna BlockaDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Hematology, Oncology, and Rheumatology, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany; Division of Hematology and Hematologic Malignancies, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Klothilda LimDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Hannah StuartDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Julia FredeDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Center for Translational Cancer Research, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Nathaniel G TadrosDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Caroline R M WiggersDepartment of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Glenn J HannaDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Birgit KnoechelBroad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Jens G LohrDepartment of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Hematology and Hematologic Malignancies, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA. Electronic address: Jens.Lohr@hci.utah.edu.

Funding

Targeting oncogenic TCR signaling in PTCLP01CA233412 · NCI · DANA-FARBER CANCER INST · PI KNOECHEL, BIRGIT · 2019 to 2023
$8.7M
Mechanisms of immune evasion in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and its therapeutic implicationsR01CA249185 · NCI · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · PI KNOECHEL, BIRGIT · 2021 to 2025
$1.9M
Liquid Biopsy in Myeloma to Inform Outcome and Treatment DecisionsR37CA276044 · NCI · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · PI Jens G Lohr · 2023 to 2026
$1.5M
NCI NIH HHS P01 CA233412NCI NIH HHS R01 CA249185NCI NIH HHS R37 CA276044
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAdenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a malignancy for which currently no therapies are approved by the FDA. Thus, there is an urgent need to identify novel treatments. Although imaging is the standard to evaluate responses to experimental drugs, accurate radiologic assessments can be challenging. CT and MRI may lead to an underestimation of the tumor burden, whereas PET is limited by the slow growth rate of ACC. Here, we demonstrate that liquid biopsy to detect ACC-derived cell-free DNA can serve as a complementary marker for assessing tumor burden and therapeutic futility. PATIENTS AND

methodsWe investigated 47 blood samples from 15 patients with advanced ACC who received all-trans retinoic acid in a phase II clinical trial and determined the kinetics of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) over time. We established two independent methods for ctDNA detection: an unbiased approach based on low-pass whole genome sequencing (lpWGS) (<1x) and a targeted sequencing approach focused on known somatic mutations.

resultslpWGS performed better in detecting the ctDNA than targeted sequencing (in 47 vs. 20 % of patients who provided plasma samples, respectively), and has the advantage of not requiring a prior knowledge of the mutational landscape of the tumor. Overall, the presence of ctDNA and higher tumor fraction pointed toward a correlation with shorter progression-free survival and time spent on therapy as well as higher probability of progressive versus stable disease, although statistical significance was not achieved, possibly due to the limited size of the patient cohort.

conclusionOur findings suggest that ctDNA may serve as an additional tool for therapeutic guidance in ACC patients.

Indexed as

Biomarkers, TumorCarcinoma, Adenoid CysticCell-Free Nucleic AcidsCirculating Tumor DNAMedical FutilityAdultAgedFemaleHumansLiquid BiopsyMaleMiddle AgedBiomarkers, TumorCell-Free Nucleic AcidsCirculating Tumor DNA

Identifiers

PMID40966846
PMCPMC13198013

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.