Abstract A030: The role of liquid biopsies in optimizing early-onset non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cancer screening and detection in underserved populations globally

Abstract Non-small cell lung cancer remains a formidable global health challenge, compounded with high mortality rates that often occur due to prevalence of late-stage diagnoses. To improve patient outcomes, early detection is critical in the diagnostic pipeline. However, significant disparities in access to timely screening and diagnosis persist in early-onset cancer diagnoses, particularly in patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinomas (NSCLC) from underserved populations worldwide. Liquid biopsies, a non-invasive diagnostic methodology analyzing tumor-derived components in bodily fluids from “cell-free DNA” (cfDNA), to detect cancer-tumour DNA (ctDNA), have been proposed as revolutionary in enhancing screening and early detection in other cancers. This paper reviews meta-analyses of the application of liquid biopsies in early-onset NSCLC diagnostics, as a diagnostic tool to improve clinical outcomes via timely diagnoses in underrepresented and underserved populations globally. It critically discusses the ethical concerns of the equitable implementation of these novel, prohibitively-expensive processes in diverse, sometimes remote communities. Leveraging recent meta-analyses (2021-2025), the paper presents quantitative data on diagnostic accuracy across various cancer types, underscoring the potential of this technology to bridge healthcare disparities and improve clinical outcomes across variable communities, especially for NSCLC. Citation Format: Nicole Ramlachan, Samuel M. West. The role of liquid biopsies in optimizing early-onset non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cancer screening and detection in underserved populations globally abstract. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference in Cancer Research: The Rise in Early-Onset Cancers—Knowledge Gaps and Research Opportunities; 2025 Dec 10-13; Montreal, QC, Canada. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2025;31 (23Suppl): Abstract nr A030.