BioVoice News May 2017 Issue 12 Volume 1 | Page 43

Is the test process simpler than existing alternatives? How cost effective is it? A cancer patient is under tremendous mental and physical stress while undergoing treatment. There are major or minor surgical interventions followed by exposure to cytotoxic chemotherapy and radiation inducing PET scans. The option of Strand LB helps in improving the quality of life of the patient because of its simplicity. It is essentially a simple blood draw that can be done at a hospital or at the patient’s home. As an alternative to the solid biopsy it is minimally invasive and therefore reduces pain. Strand LB can be performed multiple times at regular intervals for disease monitoring, which is not possible in the case of solid biopsy. The technique also helps in limiting exposure to harmful radioactive waves during currently routine follow-up PET scans. On the cost front, liquid biopsy is cheaper than solid biopsy/PET scans done at a private hospital. Also, since it is a simple blood draw, there is no need for hospital admission, thus reducing the cost of treatment. As an alternative to the solid biopsy it is minimally invasive and therefore reduces pain. Strand LB can be performed multiple times at regular intervals for disease monitoring, which is not possible in the case of solid biopsy BIOVOICENEWS.COM 43