Background: This study explores the clinical value of cfDNA methylation and fragmentation for the early diagnosis of esophageal cancer using liquid biopsy.
Methods: Whole genome bisulfite sequencing and low-pass whole genome sequencing were utilized to detect cfDNA biomarkers, comparing 30 esophageal cancer patients with 10 healthy controls.
Results: Significant differences in cfDNA methylation and fragmentation were observed between cancerous and non-cancerous samples (p < 0.05). A volcano plot identified 822 differentially methylated markers (817 upregulated, 5 downregulated), with SOX17, SOX1, ZNF382, ZNF667-AS1, and TFPI2 highly associated with esophageal cancer. Fragmentation markers (EDM, FSD, FSR, TFBS, CNV) showed 95 % specificity and sensitivity, with EDM demonstrating the best performance.
Conclusion: Our study highlights the clinical potential of cfDNA methylation and fragmentation biomarkers for the early diagnosis of esophageal cancer.
Keywords: Biomarkers; Esophageal cancer; Fragmentation; Methylation; cfDNA.
Copyright © 2025. Published by Elsevier Inc.