Patients sometimes present with serious symptoms — fever, fatigue, inflammation, jaundice — but standard tests don’t reveal the source. Traditional cultures and PCR panels can miss rare or unexpected pathogens.
By sequencing all the DNA that is circulating in the blood and comparing it to microbial databases, the presence of specific pathogens can be identified better — even rare or unexpected ones.
A near comprehensive list of viruses, bacteria and fungi can be obtained in this way. Giving unprecedented insight into the possible pathogens that might be affecting the patient. A specific diagnosis of this information for the specific patient is necessary.
How WGSearcher Can Help
WGSearcher.com can be used to analyze sequencing data (.bam files) from liquid biopsies to identify DNA from organisms. This allows clinicians to go beyond standard panels and uncover a much broader range of potential infections. Even ones that had not been considered yet.
Example situations for considering a Microbial Liquid Biopsy:
- When a patient has sepsis of unknown origin
- When empiric antibiotic therapy fails
- In immunocompromised patients at risk for unusual pathogens
- When traditional cultures return negative but symptoms persist