Plasma EBV DNA Monitoring in Post-treatment NPC Patients

Long-term Results of Plasma Epstein-Barr Virus DNA Monitoring In Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma After Curative Treatment

Continuous regular monitoring of plasma EBV DNA in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) after treatment have rarely been investigated. The investigators try to analyze the long-term observational results (role in early relapse detection and impact on survival) in NPC patients after curative treatment.

The investigators enrolled 441 NPC patients who had finished finished curative radiotherapy with/without chemotherapy and no recurrence/metastasis before entry this study from five hospitals in Taiwan. Blood samples were collected on the day of enrollment and monitored once every 2-3 months for plasma EBV DNA measurement. After long-term observation, we analyze the impact of continuous plasma EBV DNA monitoring on the early dection of tumor relapse and do risk grouping for survival analyses according to the blood test results.

Inclusion criteria

• histologically-proven nasopharyngeal carcinoma without distant metastasis (M0) at initial presentation
• finished curative radiotherapy (with/without chemotherapy) within 3 years

Exclusion criteria

• no occurrence of documented recurrence/metastasis before entry