The rational use of detection of CTC and serum HER2 ECD for HER2-positive advanced breast cancer patients.

Abstract

e12084Background: Circulating tumor cell (CTC) and serum HER2 ECD can reflect tumorous biological information in different aspects, however their clinical significance for HER2-positive advanced breast cancer receiving anti-HER2 therapy remain unclear. We performed this prospective, monocenter, double-blinded study to investigate the potential clinical significance of detection of CTC and serum HER2 ECD for advanced breast cancer patients with histological HER2-positivity. Methods: A total of 155 eligible patients were enrolled in the present study from April 2012 to October 2015. We used Cell search system and ADVIA Centaur System to detect CTC and serum HER2 ECD respectively. Patients received systemic treatment according to national and international guidelines. Results: Forty nine (31.6%) patients had ≥ 5 CTC, One hundred and twenty three (79.4%) patients had serum HER2 ECD values of at least 15ng/ml, forty seven (30.3%) patients had both elevated CTC and ECD values, thirty (19.4%) patients had both n...