A Circulating Tumor Cell Test for HPV-Related Cancers Provides More Information to Physicians and Their Patients
After a conventional tonsillectomy at a community hospital outside of Houston, Thomas Standard was diagnosed with early stage tonsil cancer related to the human papillomavirus (HPV). When a PET scan following surgery showed residual cancer, a radiologist at the hospital suggested he call Ron Karni, MD, associate professor and chief of the Division of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. Dr. Karni fast-tracked Standard to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, where he performed a minimally invasive tonsillectomy and is now monitoring him every three months using the first blood-marker test for HPV-driven cancer.
NavDx by Naveris is the only clinically validated circulating tumor-tissue-modified HPV (TTMV®) DNA blood test that aids in the detection of HPV-driven cancer. “This new molecular tool – sometimes called a liquid biopsy – can help patients like Mr. Standard feel assured that they are free of tumor cells circulating in the blood,” Karni says. “Cancer cells leave tiny markers that detach from a primary tumor and travel through the bloodstream or lymphatic system to other parts of the body. It’s a new tool in our armamentarium for cancer patients, and he was a perfect candidate because his cancer was early stage and treated by surgery alone.”
Liquid biopsy allows for multiple samples to be taken over time, which may help physicians understand what type of genetic or molecular changes are taking place in a tumor. TTMV can also be used to help plan future treatment or determine how well treatment is working, in addition to showing if cancer has returned.
Dr. Karni performed Standard’s tonsillectomy on May 18, 2022, and ordered his first TTMV test six months later. “They called me with the results, and my blood was clear of cancer,” he says. “My wife and I were relieved.”