Menu
Recruiting NCT07450612

Liquid Biopsy and Machine Learning for Early Colorectal Cancer, Adenomas, Lynch Cancers, and Residual Disease Detection

— Observational Colorectal Cancer Adenoma Colon Adenoma Colon Polyp Colon Adenoma

For patients and families

In plain language

An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.

What is being studied
The protocol lists: BEACON.
Who it may be relevant to
Registry conditions: Colorectal Cancer, Adenoma Colon, Adenoma Colon Polyp, Colon Adenoma. Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
What needs checking
Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
Where it takes place
Italy
Next step
Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →

Unsure about the terms? Read our patient guide →

Overview

This is an multicenter study that will test the diagnostic accuracy of a blood test (i.e., a liquid biopsy) for the diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC), advanced adenomas (AAs), as well as Lynch-syndrome associated cancers. Additionally, a pre-planned analysis will evaluate the use of this liquid biopsy as a tool for molecular residual disease monitoring purposes.

Detailed description

Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a significant public health burden as the third-most commonly diagnosed and second-deadliest malignancy. While CRC is potentially preventable through the removal of precursor lesions known as advanced adenomas (AAs), current screening modalities have limitations. The fecal immunochemical test (FIT) exhibits reduced sensitivity for early-stage CRC and AAs, primarily lowering mortality rather than incidence. Colonoscopy, while effective, is invasive, costly, and suffers from suboptimal adherence. Additionally, individuals with Lynch syndrome (LS), who carry a pathogenic germline variant in mismatch repair (MMR) genes, lack effective and reliable methods for early-stage detection of non-CRC tumors associated with the syndrome.

The rationale of this study, BEACON/2026, is to develop and validate two blood-based tests to address these clinical gaps. The first is a screening test sensitive to both CRC and AAs to complement existing screening options; the second is a multi-cancer early detection (MCED) test tailored to the LS spectrum. The central hypothesis is that a liquid biopsy approach combining cell-free microRNAs (cf-miRNAs, which are sensitive) and exosome-bound microRNAs (exo-miRNAs, which are specific) can effectively distinguish patients with AAs, CRC, and LS-associated cancers from controls.

This study follows the Early Detection Research Network (EDRN) recommendations for biomarker development, including biomarker discovery, prioritization, training, and independent validation (Phases I through III). The experimental design complies with PROBE recommendations for prospectively collected biospecimens that are blindly evaluated. The procedure involves the collection of peripheral blood to isolate RNA from plasma or serum for reverse transcription, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) analysis and machine-learning modeling . This non-invasive approach aims to provide a cost-effective, patient-friendly alternative to improve screening participation and disease monitoring

Interventions

  • Diagnostic test BEACON
    A panel of circulating microRNA, whose expression level is tested in cell-free and exosome-derived samples

Primary outcome measures

  • Sensitivity [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year]
Secondary outcome measures (2)
  • Specificity [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year]
  • Proportion of correct predictions (true positives and true negatives) among the total number of cases (i.e., accuracy) [Time frame: Through study completion, an average of 1 year]

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion criteria

  • All individuals included in the study need to have had a colonoscopy at the time of blood sampling.
  • Received standard diagnostic and staging (as necessary) procedures as per local guidelines, and at least one sample was drawn before receiving any curative-intent treatment.
  • Received standard pathological and endoscopic diagnosis and assessment for cohort assignment

Exclusion criteria

  • Lack of informed consent
  • Inflammatory bowel disease

Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.

Healthy volunteers: Yes

Study design

Observational model
Case-control

Study locations

Italy · 4 centers
  • Gastronterology and Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital — Milan
  • Prof Giulia Martina Cavestro, MD PhD — Milan
  • San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Gastroenterology and Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Unit — Milan
  • Dipartimento di Chirurgia Oncologica e Dipartimento di Oncologia Sperimentale Istituto Naz — Milan

Publications

  • Ahlquist DA, Sargent DJ, Loprinzi CL, Levin TR, Rex DK, Ahnen DJ, Knigge K, Lance MP, Burgart LJ, Hamilton SR, Allison JE, Lawson MJ, Devens ME, Harrington JJ, Hillman SL. Stool DNA and occult blood testing for screen detection of colorectal neoplasia. Ann Intern Med. 2008 Oct 7;149(7):441-50, W81. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-149-7-200810070-00004. PMID 18838724
  • Aziz Z, Wagner S, Agyekum A, Pumpalova YS, Prest M, Lim F, Rustgi S, Kastrinos F, Grady WM, Hur C. Cost-Effectiveness of Liquid Biopsy for Colorectal Cancer Screening in Patients Who Are Unscreened. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Nov 1;6(11):e2343392. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.43392. PMID 37971743
  • Barnell EK, Kang Y, Wurtzler EM, Griffith M, Chaudhuri AA, Griffith OL; Geneoscopy Scientists. Noninvasive Detection of High-Risk Adenomas Using Stool-Derived Eukaryotic RNA Sequences as Biomarkers. Gastroenterology. 2019 Sep;157(3):884-887.e3. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2019.05.058. Epub 2019 May 30. No abstract available. PMID 31154021
  • Barnell EK, Wurtzler EM, La Rocca J, Fitzgerald T, Petrone J, Hao Y, Kang Y, Holmes FL, Lieberman DA. Multitarget Stool RNA Test for Colorectal Cancer Screening. JAMA. 2023 Nov 14;330(18):1760-1768. doi: 10.1001/jama.2023.22231. PMID 37870871
  • Bettegowda C, Sausen M, Leary RJ, Kinde I, Wang Y, Agrawal N, Bartlett BR, Wang H, Luber B, Alani RM, Antonarakis ES, Azad NS, Bardelli A, Brem H, Cameron JL, Lee CC, Fecher LA, Gallia GL, Gibbs P, Le D, Giuntoli RL, Goggins M, Hogarty MD, Holdhoff M, Hong SM, Jiao Y, Juhl HH, Kim JJ, Siravegna G, Laheru DA, Lauricella C, Lim M, Lipson EJ, Marie SK, Netto GJ, Oliner KS, Olivi A, Olsson L, Riggins PMID 24553385
  • Carethers JM. Stool-Based Screening Tests for Colorectal Cancer. JAMA. 2023 Mar 14;329(10):839-840. doi: 10.1001/jama.2023.0547. PMID 36800187
  • Chung DC, Gray DM 2nd, Singh H, Issaka RB, Raymond VM, Eagle C, Hu S, Chudova DI, Talasaz A, Greenson JK, Sinicrope FA, Gupta S, Grady WM. A Cell-free DNA Blood-Based Test for Colorectal Cancer Screening. N Engl J Med. 2024 Mar 14;390(11):973-983. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2304714. PMID 38477985
  • Imperiale TF, Porter K, Zella J, Gagrat ZD, Olson MC, Statz S, Garces J, Lavin PT, Aguilar H, Brinberg D, Berkelhammer C, Kisiel JB, Limburg PJ; BLUE-C Study Investigators. Next-Generation Multitarget Stool DNA Test for Colorectal Cancer Screening. N Engl J Med. 2024 Mar 14;390(11):984-993. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2310336. PMID 38477986

Identifiers

NCT: NCT07450612 · BEACON/2026

Primary sources (government registries)

View this study on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗