Liquid Biopsies in Oncology—3rd Edition
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Oncology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2026 | Viewed by 2479
Special Issue Editors
Interests: breast cancer; circulating tumor cells (CTCs); cell-free DNA (cfDNA); cell-tumor DNA (ctDNA); liquid biopsies; genetic variants
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: precision medicine; personalized medicine; cancer genomics; genomics; liquid biopsy; molecular diagnostic; laboratory medicine; clinical molecular biology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In the era of precision oncology, tumor molecular characterization plays a key role in selecting the right treatment for each patient at the right time. Technological advances, particularly next-generation sequencing (NGS), have paved the way to personalized medicine, reducing the time and costs required to assess the tumor’s genetic profile. Unfortunately, in some cases, tumor biopsies are not feasible, due to insufficient or inaccessible material. The use of liquid biopsies has revolutionized the standard clinical approach by allowing the detection of different circulating molecules in the bloodstream and other body fluids, which may have a key role in diagnosing and monitoring the evolution of the tumor, and evaluating the response or resistance to the treatment. Since their FDA approval in 2016, for a therapy-guiding blood-based test to detect EGFR mutations in lung cancer patients, liquid biopsies are emerging as the standard of care. Liquid biopsies have several advantages, including minimal invasiveness and repeatability, which could guarantee a dynamic picture of the tumor and the chance to monitor pharmacological responses to the biopsy.
We invite scientists to submit original research focused on the application of liquid biopsies as an innovative tool in cancer diagnosis and monitoring, as well as its possible application in clinical practice. Articles may also be focused on understanding how circulating molecules offer new therapeutic strategies in cancer treatment. Review articles that describe the state of the art on this topic are also encouraged. This Special Issue, focusing on liquid biopsies in oncology, includes the use of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating tumor cells (CTCs), circulating tumor RNAs (ctRNAs) as well as miRNAs, and extracellular vesicles (EVs). The topics of interest for this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Liquid biopsy for cancer screening, diagnosis, prognosis, follow-up and therapeutic management of tumors;
- Liquid biopsy for stratification and monitoring of cancer patients;
- Liquid biopsy for the detection of actionable oncogenic mutations in cancers;
- Liquid biopsy targeting ctDNA for molecular diagnosis of cancer;
- Clinical validity and utility of ctDNA and ctRNA for tumor analysis;
- Extracellular vesicle biomarkers;
- New techniques to evaluate cell-free molecules;
- Liquid biopsy on exosome for cancer diagnosis;
- Liquid biopsies and epigenetics.
Dr. Sandra V. Fernandez
Dr. Carmela Paolillo
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- precision oncology
- personalized therapy
- cancer biomarkers
- liquid biopsy
- biological fluids
- circulating molecules
- circulating tumor cells
- CTCs
- ctDNA
- ctRNA
- cell-free DNA
- cfDNA
- NGS
- circulating miRNAs
- exosomes
- extracellular vesicles
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
Related Special Issues
- Liquid Biopsies in Oncology in International Journal of Molecular Sciences (18 articles)
- Liquid Biopsies in Oncology II in International Journal of Molecular Sciences (8 articles)
