Whether Sputum Can Serve as an Alternative Source for Liquid Biopsy in Patients With Lung Cancer

A Prospective Study of Advanced NSCLC Patients Genomic Landscape Through Sputum NGS Detection

This study intends to use Onconscreen plus 520 Panel (Burning Rock, China) to conduct NGS testing in sputum, tissues and blood samples of patients with advanced NSCLC. In order to explore the use of sputum as a diagnosis method for NSCLC patients, we will collect relevant clinical information and follow-up treatment information. The primary endpoint will reveal the effectiveness, accuracy, and feasibility in sputum, as compared to tissues and blood samples. This study aims to study the feasibility and advantages/disadvantages of using sputum as an noval body fluid biopsy option.

With the advancements in the development of targeted therapy, the detection of actionable genes has become routine practice in diagnosing lung cancer, especially in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Due to its non-invasiveness and great accessibility, plasma-based mutation profiling, with a sensitivity of approximately 70% relative to tissue samples, is widely used in clinical settings. Profiling using other body fluids such as pleural effusion, ascites, cerebrospinal fluid have been actively explored. Circulating cell-free DNA has also been shown to be present in other bodily fluids such as sputum and urine, which have potential to serve as liquid biopsy media for comprehensive mutation profiling. In this study, we investigated the potential of sputum obtained from NSCLC patients for mutation profiling using matched tissue, plasma and sputum from more than 30 advanced-stage NSCLC patients.

Baseline tissues, plasma and sputum samples from more than 30 newly diagnosed advanced NSCLC patients with 520 Panel sequencing (tissue 1000X, sputum 1000X, plasma cfDNA 10000X), in different methods will be compared.

Primary endpoints:

1、Compare different sample types with concordence rate, sensitivity, and specificity.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Patients with stage IIIB-IV NSCLC in AJCC TNM stage (8th edition) confirmed with histology or cytology;
2. Newly diagnosed;
3. There are sufficient samples that meet the requirements for examination;
4. Eligible for the next anti-tumor systemic treatment;
5. Willing to sign the consent inform, age ≥18 years;
6. Patients willing to cooperate with the planned follow-up schedule;
7. Permit to collect clinical data needed by the institute.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Diagnosed with other malignant tumors at the same time (except for fully treated cervical carcinoma in situ, basal or squamous cell skin cancer);
2. The patient has other serious diseases that may affect follow-up and short-term survival;
3. Any other medical conditions and social/psychological problems that investigator evaluated is not suitable to enroll in this study;
4. Absents of contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or contrast-enhanced computer tomography (CT) during clinical follow-up.