{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,11]],"date-time":"2026-07-11T22:53:37Z","timestamp":1783810417817,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"13","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,21]],"date-time":"2022-06-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1655769600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Cancers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Liquid biopsy is a potentially useful tool for melanoma patients, also for detecting BRAS\/NRAS mutations, even if the tissue analysis remains the current standard. Methods: In this work, we tested ctDNA on plasma samples from 56 BRAF-V600\/NRAS mutant stage III\/IV melanoma patients using a real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR)-based platform. The study population was divided into two cohorts: the first including 26 patients who had undergone radical resection (resected cohort) and the second including 30 patients who had unresected measurable disease (advanced cohort). Moreover, for 10 patients in the advanced cohort, ctDNA assessment was repeated at specified timepoints after baseline testing. Data were analyzed and correlated to the clinicopathologic characteristics and outcomes. Results: In the baseline cohort, a higher tissue\u2013plasma concordance was seen in patients with high burden of disease (sum of diameters \u226530 mm, \u22652 metastatic sites, elevated LDH levels); furthermore, monitoring of these patients through ctDNA analysis was informative for therapeutic responses. On the other hand, the low sensitivity of this technique did not allow for clinically valuable prediction of relapses in radically resected stage III\/IV patients. Conclusions: Overall, our data suggest that qPCR-based ctDNA analysis could be informative in a subset of locally advanced and metastatic melanoma patients with specific clinical\u2013radiological characteristics, supporting further investigations in this setting.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/cancers14133053","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,21]],"date-time":"2022-06-21T21:55:19Z","timestamp":1655848519000},"page":"3053","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Clinical Utility of Liquid Biopsy to Detect BRAF and NRAS Mutations in Stage III\/IV Melanoma Patients by Using Real-Time PCR"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5383-4469","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emilio Francesco","family":"Giunta","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0261-0382","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Vincenzo","family":"De Falco","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4060-7662","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pietro Paolo","family":"Vitiello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, 10060 Candiolo, TO, Italy"},{"name":"Department of Oncology, University of Torino, 10060 Candiolo, TO, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1475-3252","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Luigi Pio","family":"Guerrera","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"},{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Ospedale Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, 71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gabriella","family":"Suarato","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rossella","family":"Napolitano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alessandra","family":"Perrone","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1413-8214","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giuseppe","family":"Argenziano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dermatology Unit, Department of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8340-3184","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Renato","family":"Franco","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Pathology Unit, Department of Mental and Physical Health and Preventive Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80138 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2408-6091","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michele","family":"Caraglia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Precision Medicine, AOU Policlinico Vanvitelli, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80138 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Erika","family":"Martinelli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Davide","family":"Ciardiello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"},{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Ospedale Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, 71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fortunato","family":"Ciardiello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stefania","family":"Napolitano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Teresa","family":"Troiani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Precision Medicine, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi della Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100136","DOI":"10.1016\/j.esmoop.2021.100136","article-title":"How we treat locoregional melanoma","volume":"6","author":"Troiani","year":"2021","journal-title":"ESMO Open"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1535","DOI":"10.1056\/NEJMoa1910836","article-title":"Five-Year Survival with Combined Nivolumab and Ipilimumab in Advanced Melanoma","volume":"381","author":"Larkin","year":"2019","journal-title":"N. 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