Liquid biopsies promise major advantages for cancer screening and diagnosis. By detecting biomarkers in peripheral blood samples, liquid biopsies reduce the need for invasive techniques and provide important genetic information integral to the emerging molecular classification of cancers. Unfortunately, the concentrations of most biomarkers, particularly circulating tumour nucleic acids, are vanishingly small—beyond the sensitivity and specificity of most assays. Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats diagnostics (herein labelled ‘CRISPR-Dx’) use gene editing tools to detect, rather than modify, nucleic acids with extremely high specificity. These tools are commonly combined with isothermal nucleic acid amplification to also achieve sensitivities comparable to high-performance laboratory-based techniques, such as digital PCR. CRISPR assays, however, are inherently well suited to adaptation for point-of-care (POC) use, and unlike antigen-based POC assays, are significantly easier and faster to develop. In this review, we summarise current CRISPR-Dx platforms and their analytical potential for cancer biomarker discovery, with an emphasis on enhancing early diagnosis, disease monitoring, point-of-care testing, and supporting cancer therapy.

When clear aligners and veneers are used preoperatively, placement of orthodontic brackets is not possible. The MatrixWAVE maxillomandibular fixation (MMF) screws are readily available in many operating rooms and can be used as an alternative interim fixation device. Screws from this system can be left in place for postoperative elastic physiotherapy. In this case report, MMF screws were left in place for muscle memory training and an aid to prevent relapse. The screws were well tolerated by the patient. Removal at 14 weeks resulted in small wounds, which healed quickly.