The Success of ctDNA Testing in Colorectal Cancer: Adham Jurdi, Natera

Adham Jurdi was an oncologist at the Austin Cancer Center when the pandemic hit. His cancer patients were a doubly vulnerable population. Office visits, follow-up care — every interaction between the patient and the healthcare system put them at risk for COVID-19 infection, which would hit extra hard because of their compromised immunity. It was then that he discovered a blood test that could monitor the patient’s cancer using ctDNA and keep the patient more at home.Jurdi is now the medical director of oncology at Natera. He tells the story of how he began using Natera’s tests and eventually decided to join the company based on the promise of this new technology.“In 2020, everything shut down because of COVID-19. It was a really interesting time to take care of cancer patients. One of our top priorities was to minimize cancer patient interaction in the clinic to avoid exposure to COVID-19. And that includes getting scans,” says Jurdi at the outset of today’s program.This was precisely when Natera’s ctDNA testing came on the market. Jurdi said it looked very promising, so he “dipped his toes in the water.” He soon saw that the ctDNA test was predicting what would happen several months before the scans would show anything and decided to use it across the board with his patients. Fast forward a year, and he would join Natera to get the chance to help shape the field.And how is ctDNA testing impacting cancer, particularly colorectal cancer, today? For what applications throughout treatment are oncologists using ctDNA testing? What are the results of some extensive ongoing studies? When might major guidelines include ctDNA testing as routine care?Jurdi says that 40 percent of oncologists are now using this testing from Natera, and “we’re just scratching the surface.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe