Mendelspod Podcast

How Liquid Biopsy Is Becoming Standard of Care with Rita Shaknovich, CMO, Agilent


Listen Later

In this episode of Mendelspod, Theral welcomes Dr. Rita Shaknovich, Chief Medical Officer in Agilent’s Life Sciences and Diagnostics group, for a high-level and deeply insightful look at where liquid biopsy technology stands today.

With her background in hematopathology and molecular diagnostics, Rita brings clarity to a field that has long promised transformation—and is now delivering. “It’s not the future anymore. It’s actually here,” she says. Liquid biopsy has moved beyond the buzzword phase and is increasingly integrated into both clinical trials and standard care for cancers like non-small cell lung cancer.

We talk about why fluids are such a powerful source for diagnostics, with Rita reminding us, “Sixty percent of our body is water.” Sampling these accessible fluids not only makes for less invasive testing but also captures the heterogeneity and clonal evolution of diseases like cancer better than traditional biopsies.

Rita also offers a tour through the latest technology advances, from target enrichment chemistry to the rise of multiomic platforms, including Agilent’s Avida portfolio. “There are 30 million CpG sites in the genome that can be methylated,” she explains, highlighting why DNA methylation is such a rich source of diagnostic information.

She discusses the operational hurdles labs face in adopting liquid biopsy—chief among them being assay complexity and staffing—and how automation and customizable panels are easing the way.

The show concludes with a call to action: "We are very slow often as a medical community adopting new tools. I hope we will democratize access as the clinical evidence grows.”

Bonus: To go deeper, listeners are invited to attend a GenomeWeb webinar on July 8th, presented by Dr. Nicola Normanno, a leading voice in the liquid biopsy space.



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
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Mendelspod PodcastBy Theral Timpson

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

31 ratings


More shows like Mendelspod Podcast

View all
Freakonomics Radio by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

Freakonomics Radio

32,071 Listeners

Making Sense with Sam Harris by Sam Harris

Making Sense with Sam Harris

26,327 Listeners

a16z Podcast by Andreessen Horowitz

a16z Podcast

1,043 Listeners

The Tim Ferriss Show by Tim Ferriss: Bestselling Author, Human Guinea Pig

The Tim Ferriss Show

16,040 Listeners

Pivot by New York Magazine

Pivot

9,243 Listeners

The Long Run with Luke Timmerman by Timmerman Report

The Long Run with Luke Timmerman

121 Listeners

The Bulwark Podcast by The Bulwark

The Bulwark Podcast

11,757 Listeners

The Journal. by The Wall Street Journal & Spotify Studios

The Journal.

5,958 Listeners

The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway by Vox Media Podcast Network

The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway

5,361 Listeners

Business Of Biotech by Ben Comer

Business Of Biotech

88 Listeners

BioCentury This Week by BioCentury

BioCentury This Week

30 Listeners

Machine Learning Street Talk (MLST) by Machine Learning Street Talk (MLST)

Machine Learning Street Talk (MLST)

91 Listeners

Raising Health by Andreessen Horowitz, a16z Bio + Health

Raising Health

144 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,371 Listeners

Crucible Moments by Sequoia Capital

Crucible Moments

89 Listeners