The global pioneers of liquid biopsy were in Mumbai this week to launch an Indian platform — and they say it can be a game-changer for costs in India.
What happened?
Scientists Catherine Alix-Panabieres(Univ. Medical Centre of Montpellier, France) and Klaus Pantel (Univ. Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany) - who coined the term "liquid biopsy" in 2010 - unveiled an indigenously developed liquid biopsy platform by Mumbai-based Actorius Innovations.
Speaking to ETHealthworld / Economic Times, they explained why a simple blood test matters financially:
> “I think it will have a significant positive effect on the financial burden of the patients,” said Prof. Pantel. “First, if we detect cancer early, it can be cured and the patient can continue a normal life... I also think when we use the blood test to understand which patient needs which therapy, it is very important because then we do not use expensive therapies that do not work. We can just use expensive therapies for those patients on whom it works and that is also cost-effective. I would say that even if our test is $1,000, it would save probably $10,000 in therapy costs that are otherwise given in the wrong way.”
How does it works?
Liquid biopsy is a non-invasive blood test that detects circulating tumour cells (CTCs), circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) and other cancer biomarkers. Unlike tissue biopsy or PET-CT, it needs only a blood sample.
Uses:
1. Early detection - catch cancer when it's curable
2. Personalized treatment- avoid giving a Rs 5-10 lakh immunotherapy to a patient who won't respond
3. Monitoring - detect recurrence before symptoms, assess response to therapy
India's context:
India records 14 lakh+ new cancer cases annually, many detected late. Traditional pathway - imaging > invasive biopsy > wait > surgery - adds cost and delay.
New Indian players are bringing prices down:
- EarlySure Diagnostics (partnered with Korean IMBDx) is offering tests starting at ~Rs 30,000 - vs repeated biopsies + imaging that can run into lakhs
- Strand Life Sciences' Strand LB test launched at Rs 20,000 vs Rs 2 lakh abroad, and cheaper than a PET-CT (Rs 25,000)
- NIMS Hyderabad is rolling out NGS-based liquid biopsy free for poor patients under its Diamond Project - 1,443 free tests done since 2024 a1f54806
Experts caution it's not a replacement for tissue biopsy yet, but an add-on layer that adds molecular clarity and prevents unnecessary surgeries - a major driver of both financial and physical burden in India.