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Jason Mouabbi, MD

Jason Mouabbi, MD

Jason Mouabbi, MD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Breast Medical Oncology in the Division of Cancer Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Articles by Jason Mouabbi, MD

Panelists note that detecting low-level circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) despite normal imaging presents a clinical challenge, requiring personalized management that balances early intervention with patient-centered communication, as this molecular signal offers a valuable window to detect and treat microscopic disease before overt recurrence.

Panelists highlight that advances in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) testing now enable detection of cancer at ultralow levels far earlier than traditional methods, offering new opportunities for timely intervention while emphasizing that negative results, though increasingly reliable, still require cautious interpretation to guide personalized treatment decisions.

Panelists discuss the real-world challenges of managing patients with positive circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) but no radiographic evidence of disease, emphasizing treatment intensification, genomic profiling for resistance mutations, dynamic monitoring, and the integration of ctDNA with imaging and biopsy to guide personalized breast cancer care.

Panelists discuss ongoing studies exploring circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) use in the adjuvant breast cancer setting to detect recurrence earlier and guide therapy, highlighting advances in assay sensitivity, the choice between tumor-informed and tumor-agnostic tests, and the challenge of turning ctDNA’s strong prognostic value into actionable, outcome-improving interventions.

Panelists discuss how circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) serves as a highly predictive prognostic biomarker in breast cancer, guiding personalized treatment intensification and informing important patient decisions while enhancing risk stratification and motivating proactive care despite ongoing research into its impact on long-term outcomes.

Panelists discuss how circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is becoming a vital biomarker in breast cancer, with its dynamic changes guiding personalized treatment decisions, serving as a surrogate end point in trials, enabling earlier detection of progression, and offering a less-invasive monitoring tool that complements imaging—especially benefiting patients with hard-to-monitor disease or those who are frail.

Panelists discuss how emerging data from studies like E-BLIS and I-SPY 2 validate circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) as a powerful prognostic tool in early breast cancer, showing it can detect recurrence months before imaging and potentially refine risk stratification beyond traditional markers, though its role in guiding treatment decisions remains under active investigation.

Panelists discuss how circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) monitoring provides a valuable lead time for detecting recurrence in early-stage breast cancer—especially hormone receptor–positive cases—yet requires careful patient counseling and integration with traditional prognostic tools, as its use for guiding treatment decisions remains nuanced and dependent on evolving clinical evidence.

Panelists discuss how circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) testing for molecular residual disease (MRD) offers a sensitive tool for detecting early breast cancer recurrence before clinical symptoms appear while emphasizing the importance of shared decision-making, patient education, and clinical trial referral in the absence of standardized guidelines for managing ctDNA-positive results.