# Longitudinal Tracking of ALK-Rearranged NSCLC From Plasma Using Circulating Tumor RNA and Circulating Tumor DNA

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-heeke-alk-ctrna-ctdna-jto-clin-res-rep-2025/  
OnCo record `paper-heeke-alk-ctrna-ctdna-jto-clin-res-rep-2025` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A lung cancer study that tracked ALK fusions in blood using both RNA and DNA, finding some only in the RNA.

## Summary

ALK rearrangements were detected in 15 of 28 patients at baseline, eight in both circulating tumour DNA and RNA; in two patients they were found before local consolidative therapy only in the RNA and cleared afterwards. The authors conclude that including circulating tumour RNA increased detection.

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-11-04
- Journal: JTO Clinical and Research Reports
- Year: 2025
- DOI: 10.1016/j.jtocrr.2025.100795
- Authors: Heeke S, Gandhi S, Tran HT, et al.
- Findings: ALK found in 15 of 28 at baseline; 2 patients only in RNA.
- What it means: Same-draw RNA and DNA together catch fusions one alone misses.
- Caveats: Small cohort; advanced disease.

## Sources

- Heeke et al., JTO Clin Res Rep 2025: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtocrr.2025.100795
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40160974/

## Connected records

- cancers: [ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/alk-positive-nsclc/)
- fronts: [Diagnostics & Biomarkers](https://onco.cc/fronts/diagnostics/)
- technologies: [Liquid biopsy (ctDNA)](https://onco.cc/technologies/liquid-biopsy/), [Liquid RNA biopsy (cell-free, vesicle and platelet RNA)](https://onco.cc/technologies/liquid-rna-biopsy/)
- terms: [Circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA)](https://onco.cc/terms/ctdna/)
- ideas: [Read tumour RNA and tumour DNA from the same blood draw to find and type residual cancer](https://onco.cc/ideas/idea-stack-ctdna-and-tumour-rna-residual-disease/)

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