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Colorectal cancer: what if a blood test were enough?
11 mars 2026
By Ana Espino | Published on March 11, 2026 | 3 min readColorectal cancer (CRC) remains the third most common cancer worldwide, accounting for nearly 10% of all cancers. Despite the effectiveness of screening with fecal immunochemical tests and colonoscopy, diagnosis and monitoring still rely largely on invasive techniques that can be burdensome for patients. The transition toward precision oncolo
By Ana Espino | Published on March 11, 2026 | 3 min read
Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains the third most common cancer worldwide, accounting for nearly 10% of all cancers. Despite the effectiveness of screening with fecal immunochemical tests and colonoscopy, diagnosis and monitoring still rely largely on invasive techniques that can be burdensome for patients.
The transition toward precision oncology requires tools capable of reflecting tumor dynamics in real time. Liquid biopsy, based on the analysis of circulating biomarkers in blood, has emerged as a promising alternative. It mainly relies on three categories: circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating tumor cells (CTCs), and exosomes.
This review, published in 2025 in the Polish Journal of Surgery, analyzes the clinical contribution of these biomarkers in the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic monitoring of CRC, comparing their performance and limitations with conventional methods.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains the third most common cancer worldwide, accounting for nearly 10% of all cancers. Despite the effectiveness of screening with fecal immunochemical tests and colonoscopy, diagnosis and monitoring still rely largely on invasive techniques that can be burdensome for patients.
The transition toward precision oncology requires tools capable of reflecting tumor dynamics in real time. Liquid biopsy, based on the analysis of circulating biomarkers in blood, has emerged as a promising alternative. It mainly relies on three categories: circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating tumor cells (CTCs), and exosomes.
This review, published in 2025 in the Polish Journal of Surgery, analyzes the clinical contribution of these biomarkers in the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic monitoring of CRC, comparing their performance and limitations with conventional methods.
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Scientific reference
Skrzypek M, et al. Colorectal cancer: Application of selected liquid biopsy markers. Pol Przegl Chir. 2025 Mar 25;97(4):59-64. doi: 10.5604/01.3001.0055.0608. PMID: 40679021
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