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MRD Watch

Sunday, November 15, 2026

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Independent briefing

Molecular residual disease across cancers, one sourced line at a time.

A daily briefing of sourced, fact-only updates on molecular residual disease, ctDNA, and MRD-relevant biomarkers across cancer types. Edited by Alan Tan, a genitourinary hematologist-oncologist. MRD and biomarker items are listed ahead of other news from the same stretch of days.

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Actively accruing studiesHow testing works
Edited by Alan Tan, MD
How a minimal residual disease test worksA tumor sheds DNA fragments into a blood draw and a urine sample. Sequencing finds those tumor fragments among normal DNA. After treatment, the result can read ctDNA detected or not detected.Tumor sheds DNABlood drawUrine sampleTumor DNA stands outTumorNormalAfter treatmentctDNA detectedNot detected

Latest Genitourinary items. Open the Genitourinary page.

How it works

A clear scan can still miss what is left

Drawn scanNo evidence of diseaseCells a scan does not show
The drawing starts as a clear scan labeled no evidence of disease, then shows small marks for residual cells.

“No evidence of disease” means the scan did not show a tumor. Alan Tan, MD, puts the gap this way, as an illustration rather than a cutoff: “To the human eye, a clear scan can still hide around 200 million cancer cells.” MRD testing, especially ultrasensitive MRD, looks for that leftover signal in blood.

How testing works

Today

Nov 15, 2026 ET

No update is dated today. The latest verified items are below, with MRD and biomarker reports ranked first.

Leading updates

Pinned items, then MRD and biomarker reports, then newer dates.

GUBladder / urothelialPinnedMRD / ctDNABiomarkers

Real-world adoption of circulating tumor DNA testing and adjuvant treatment decisions after radical cystectomy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer

In a Flatiron Health analysis of 4,533 people after radical cystectomy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer, documented Signatera testing 4-24 weeks after surgery increased over time (OR 1.16 per quarter) and was more common in high-risk pathology, but among 200 patients whose result preceded the treatment decision, detectable ctDNA was not independently associated with adjuvant therapy after adjustment (adjusted RR 1.34, 95% CI 0.89-2.02), while high-risk pathology was (adjusted RR 9.45).

ESMO Open

Recent

GUProstateMRD / ctDNATrials

Circulating Tumor DNA in Oligoprogressive Prostate Cancer Treated With Stereotactic Radiotherapy: A Prespecified Secondary Analysis of a Nonrandomized Clinical Trial (TRAP)

JAMA Network Open published online on November 11, 2026 a prespecified secondary analysis of the nonrandomized phase 2 TRAP trial: plasma was tested with the previously validated prostate-directed PCF_SELECT panel before stereotactic body radiotherapy in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer and oligoprogression on abiraterone or enzalutamide. Of 77 evaluable patients (81 treated at 8 UK sites), 19 (24.7%) were ctDNA-positive. Six-month progression-free survival was 21.1% versus 58.3%, and median progression-free survival was 3.0 versus 7.8 months (log-rank P = .003; adjusted HR 2.18, 95% CI 1.21-3.94, P = .009). Median time to next therapy or death was 15.3 versus 29.6 months (adjusted HR 1.57, P = .20), and median overall survival was 27.2 versus 33.6 months (adjusted HR 2.24, P = .07). The trial was not randomized, so a prognostic association is not separated from a predictive one.

JAMA Network Open

OtherPinnedMRD / ctDNAConference data

Signatera Monitoring During First-Line Immunotherapy Showed ctDNA Clearance is Associated with Long-Term Survival Across Four Metastatic Cancers

A Natera press release dated November 5, 2026, describes a real-world SITC analysis of 424 patients on first-line immunotherapy for stage IV melanoma, kidney cancer, MSI-H colorectal cancer, or NSCLC: people with two consecutive negative Signatera results had 36-month overall survival of 93.2% versus 77.9% in all others (HR 0.24, P=0.0003), and among those complete molecular responders overall survival was 93.5% if immunotherapy continued and 89.4% if it stopped (P=0.42). These figures are from the company press release; the official SITC/JITC abstract was not retrieved.

Natera, Inc. company press release

GUProstateFDABiomarkers

FDA approves lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan plus an ARPI for PSMA-positive metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer

On July 31, 2026, the FDA approved lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan with an androgen-receptor pathway inhibitor for PSMA-positive metastatic androgen-pathway-naive or -sensitive prostate cancer, with patients selected using Locametz or another approved PSMA PET product; in PSMAddition (1,144 patients) radiographic progression-free survival HR was 0.72 and median radiographic progression-free survival was not reached in either arm.

U.S. FDA

GUProstateFDABiomarkers

FDA approves capivasertib plus abiraterone for PTEN-deficient metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer

On June 12, 2026, the FDA approved capivasertib with abiraterone and prednisone for PTEN-deficient metastatic androgen-pathway-naive or -sensitive prostate cancer, and approved the VENTANA PTEN (SP218) RxDx Assay, which calls PTEN deficiency when at least 90% of viable malignant cells have no specific cytoplasmic staining; in CAPItello-281 (1,012 patients) median radiographic progression-free survival was 33.2 versus 25.7 months (HR 0.81), and overall survival was immature.

U.S. FDA