[Advanced research on circulating tumor cells in lung cancer]

Lung cancer is the malignant disease with the highest rate in terms of incidence and mortality in China. Early diagnosis and timely monitoring tumor recurrence and metastasis are extremely important for improving 5-year survival rate of lung cancer patients. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), as a "liquid biopsy specimens" for the primary tumor, provide the possibility to perform real-time, non-invasive histological identification for lung cancer patients. The detection of CTCs contributes to early diagnosis, surveillance of tumor recurrence and metastasis, and prediction of therapeutic efficacy and prognosis. Furthermore, CTCs-dependent detection emerges as a new approach for molecularly pathologic examination, study of molecular mechanisms involved in drug resistance, and resolution for tumor heterogeneity. This study reviewed the recent progress of CTCs in lung cancer research field.