Role Of Circulating Tumor Cells Research Articles

The prognostic role of circulating tumor cells and disseminated tumor cells in patients with ovarian cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The prognostic role of circulating tumor cells and disseminated tumor cells in patients with ovarian cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Detection and clinical significance of circulating tumor cells in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors

Objective To explore the relationship between the circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and clinicopathologic factors in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) patients, and evaluate the role of CTCs in predicting prognosis of GIST patients. Methods The CTCs in peripheral blood of 86 cases of GIST were detected based on nanochip platform, and the captured CTCs identified by immunofluorescence staining. The cumulative survival and progression-free survival rate in GIST patients were assessed by Kaplan-Meier method. Results CTCs were detected in 44 GIST patients, and CTCs positive rate was 51.2%. The CTCs positive rate was correlated with tumor size, mitotic count, and risk level, but not with gender, tumor location, clinical staging, morphology, lymphatic metastasis, and Ki-67. The median survival time in the CTCs negative patients [(52.76±3.48) months] was significantly higher than that in the CTCs positive group [(45.39±2.78) months, P=0.007). The CTCs appeared as significantly independent prognostic factors with a relative risk of 2.362 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.467-4.529, P=0.023] in Cox multivariate analysis. Conclusion Those results suggest that CTCs were implicated in tumor size, mitotic count, and risk level of GIST, and detection of CTCs facilitates a more accurate assessment of the disease. CTCs positive rate is closely related to the prognosis of GIST patients. Key words: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors; Circulating tumor cells; Clinical characteristics

Circulating tumor cells in breast cancer

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in breast cancer patients can be detected by Cell Search system. Results from recent studies suggested that CTCs level might serve as a prognostic marker and be used in the early assessment of therapeutic response in patients with metastatic breast cancer. However the role of CTCs in early stage breast cancer is not well established. Large prospective trials are needed to further understand its biological characteristics and to confirm its role as a predictive and prognostic marker. Key words: Breast neoplasms; Neoplasm circulating cells; Forecasting