Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42168657›Full record

ArticleJournal of neuro-oncology2026

CSF ctDNA analysis guides molecular reclassification of diffuse glioma patients.

Srividya Arjuna, Maryam Pirhoushiaran, Angel Bueno, Alexander Sanchez-Espitia, Elham Tavakkol, Kamand Khalaj, Mauli Shah, Isabel Wang, Ashish P Balar, Antonio Dono and 9 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of neuro-oncology, 2026. 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

19 authors.

Srividya Arjuna *Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Maryam Pirhoushiaran *Department of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Angel BuenoDepartment of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School at UT Health, Houston, TX, USA.
Alexander Sanchez-EspitiaDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Elham TavakkolDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Imaging, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, USA.
Kamand KhalajDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Imaging, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, USA.
Mauli ShahDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Isabel WangDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Ashish P BalarDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Antonio DonoDepartment of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School at UT Health, Houston, TX, USA.
Dzifa DuoseDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Sophia NguyenDepartment of Translational Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2130 W. Holcombe Blvd., Suite 910, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
Arash KamaliDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Imaging, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, USA.
Rajyalakshmi LuthraDivision of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
Chirag B PatelDepartment of Neuro-Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
Sujit S PrabhuDepartment of Neurosurgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
Frederick F LangDepartment of Neurosurgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
Yoshua EsquenaziDepartment of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School at UT Health, Houston, TX, USA.
Leomar Y BallesterDivision of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA. LYBallester1@mdanderson.org.

Funding

Development and Validation of a CSF Liquid Biopsy for Molecular Characterization and Monitoring of Patients with Central Nervous System TumorsK08CA241651 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF TX MD ANDERSON CAN CTR · PI BALLESTER, LEOMAR Y · 2020 to 2024
$1.3M
National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health K08CA241651 (LYB)NCI NIH HHS K08 CA241651
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThere is a critical need for better strategies to diagnose and monitor patients with gliomas. Liquid biopsies are less invasive than tissue biopsies and are amenable to serial collection at multiple timepoints. However, the analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from patients with gliomas remains underutilized in clinical practice due to technical challenges.

methodsWe collected CSF samples from 43 patients with various types of gliomas and evaluated ctDNA derived from CSF with a next generation sequencing (NGS) panel interrogating 600 cancer-related genes.

resultsTotal cell-free DNA (cfDNA) concentration obtained from CSF (0.4-5 mL) ranged from 0.09 to 60 ng/µL. Mutations were detected in 26/43 (60%) samples including 19/43 (44%) with single nucleotide variants (SNV), 11/43 (25%) with copy number variants (CNV), 8/43 (18.6%) with frameshifts and 1/43 with fusion (2.3%). Mutations were not identified in 17 CSF samples, and most of these samples (15/17; 88%) had suboptimal DNA input (< 30 ng). We identified diagnostic alterations in CSF including mutations in IDH1 (3/6 IDH-mutant gliomas), TERTp (7/29 glioblastomas), EGFR amplification (5/29 glioblastomas), and H3-3 A (4/4 pediatric high-grade gliomas). Some of these mutations, in combination with other clinical parameters, allowed us to identify specific CNS tumor types based on the 2021 World Health Organization (WHO) classification of CNS tumors, resulting in the reclassification of 3 patients. Furthermore, we observed a significant association between the CSF-ctDNA detection and imaging features.

conclusionThis study highlights the potential clinical utility of CSF-ctDNA analysis for evaluating and reclassification of patients with gliomas.

Indexed as

Biomarkers, TumorBrain NeoplasmsCirculating Tumor DNAGliomaAdolescentAdultAgedChildFemaleHigh-Throughput Nucleotide SequencingHumansMaleMiddle AgedMutationYoung AdultBiomarkers, TumorCirculating Tumor DNACerebrospinal fluidDiffuse gliomasGlioblastomaLiquid biopsyNext generation sequencing

Identifiers

PMID42168657
PMCPMC13194200

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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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.