Molecular Diagnosis

Molecular diagnosis with liquid biopsy provides a quick, minimally invasive, and accurate way to diagnose various types of cancer. At South Brooklyn Care in the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, Elvira Neculiseanu, MD, and Aleksandre Toreli, MD, use liquid biopsy to diagnose cancerous tumors and cancer cell DNA. Call the office today to request molecular diagnosis, or book your appointment online.

What is molecular diagnosis?

Molecular diagnosis, or liquid biopsy, is a minimally invasive test that screens for cancerous tumors. As solid tumors grow, pieces break off and enter your bloodstream. A liquid biopsy can detect those pieces and help guide treatment.

Specifically, molecular diagnosis detects:

Circulating tumor cells (CTC)

These cells break off from solid tumors and enter your bloodstream.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA)

ctDNA is a DNA fragment from a tumor cell in your bloodstream. DNA contains genetic information that guides the cell’s behavior.

How is molecular diagnosis different from a traditional biopsy?

During a traditional biopsy, your South Brooklyn Care provider uses special tools to collect a piece of a solid tumor or another abnormal growth. They then send your sample to a lab that analyzes it under a microscope for precancerous or cancerous cells.

In contrast, molecular diagnosis analyzes a sample of your blood for the presence of tumor cells or tumor DNA. A traditional biopsy is considered the “gold standard” of cancer testing, but molecular diagnosis is quicker and less invasive.

When is molecular diagnosis necessary?

The South Brooklyn Care team uses molecular diagnosis for several reasons, including:

Determining your prognosis

Molecular diagnosis helps monitor malignant cancers (cancers that have spread to several parts of your body). Routine liquid biopsies can monitor how severe your cancer is and determine which treatments work best.

Making treatment decisions

Molecular diagnosis can determine if you’ll benefit from targeted cancer therapy. For example, certain types of cancer have DNA errors that specific treatments are designed to attack. Routine liquid biopsies help the team identify errors unique to your body.

Is liquid biopsy painful?

Liquid biopsy is quicker and more convenient than traditional biopsy. In fact, it’s very similar to having your blood drawn. You might feel a sting or a prick when the needle pierces your skin, but any discomfort should ease quickly.

What do the results of a liquid biopsy mean?

It takes about a week to receive the results of your liquid biopsy. The results are positive or negative for circulating tumor cells (CTCs) or ctDNA. The team uses this information to determine which cancer you have and the best treatment to fight it.

Call South Brooklyn Care today to learn more about molecular diagnosis, or book your appointment online.