Abstract
The number of circulating tumor cell (CTC) in the peripheral blood of cancer patients can be a valuable biomarker for cancer diagnosis and treatment monitoring. In this study, we implemented a custom-design video-rate confocal microscopy system in capable of direct visualization of fast flowing CTC at great saphenous vein (GSV) of a live animal model in vivo. Continuous acquisition of video-rate images at GSV revealed the highly dynamic time-dependent changes in the number of intravenously injected circulating tumor cells. By extracting a calibration factor through the hemocytometric analysis of intravenously injected long-circulating red blood cells, we established a novel quantitation method for CTC in whole body blood in vivo.
Highlights
Circulating tumor cell (CTC) refers a cancer cell that have entered bloodstream from the primary tumor and survived in the blood circulation, which can extravasate to a distant organ and form new tumor colony [1]
We used a custom-built video-rate laser scanning confocal microscope system depicted in Fig. 1 for the direct imaging of circulating tumor cell (CTC) at great saphenous vein (GSV)
After the intravenous injection of CT26 colorectal cancer cells and red blood cell (RBC) fluorescently labeled by carboxyfluorescein succinimidyl ester (CFSE) and DiD, respectively, we successfully acquired the clear image of individual flowing cells in the great saphenous vein (GSV) in live animal model in vivo
Summary
Circulating tumor cell (CTC) refers a cancer cell that have entered bloodstream from the primary tumor and survived in the blood circulation, which can extravasate to a distant organ and form new tumor colony [1]. Cancer metastasis is a highly complicated process consists of multiple steps: the primary tumor growth, cancer cell mobilization and invasion into surrounding tissue, intravasation into a blood vessel, circulation in the blood stream, extravasation to distant site, and the formation of new tumor [1, 4,5,6]. Throughout these complex progressive steps, the survival during the circulation in the blood stream is considered as the most critical checkpoint for cancer cell to spread to distant organs. The quantitation of CTCs in the blood of metastatic cancer patients can provide valuable information for the precise monitoring of cancer metastasis, the evaluation of response to anti-cancer treatment and the early detection of cancer recurrence
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