Neha Jain: Re-biopsy vs Re-analysis in Tumor Sequencing
Neha Jain, Senior Director Precision Medicine at OneOncology, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Re-biopsy vs Re-analysis: Getting More Out of Tumor Sequencing
A common scenario in oncology: a patient progresses after targeted therapy. The big question is —
‘Do we really need another biopsy, or can we just re-analyze what we already sequenced?’
Re-biopsy (new sample, new sequencing)
Why it helps:
- Tumors evolve → new resistance mutations may appear
- Tumor heterogeneity means the original biopsy may no longer represent the cancer
- Some resistance mutations are only detectable in fresh tissue or liquid biopsy
Best when: You suspect acquired resistance and need the latest snapshot
Re-analysis (same data, new interpretation)
Why it helps:
- Databases and knowledge of actionable mutations expand constantly
- A variant of unknown significance (VUS) last year may be “actionable” today
- Avoids repeat invasive procedures and cost if high-quality data already exists
Best when: Therapy options are limited, and you want to mine existing data with updated annotation
Practical takeaway:
Re-biopsy = biology has changed (tumor evolution)
Re-analysis = our knowledge has changed (science evolution)
In practice, both strategies can be powerful — and knowing when to use which is becoming a critical part of precision oncology.”
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