Looking back, to the future of circulating tumor cells

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Molecular Biology
• Biomarkers

Background:

• Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are increasingly researched in metastatic cancers.
• CTC enumeration aids prognosis in breast, colon, and prostate cancer.
• Advanced CTC analysis offers deeper insights into cancer biology and treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review current developments in circulating tumor cell (CTC) detection and analysis.
• To explore the clinical relevance of CTC subpopulations and genomic characterization.
• To discuss the potential of CTCs for understanding metastasis and guiding therapy.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on CTC pathogenesis, isolation platforms, and applications.
• Discussion of CTC subpopulation analysis, including epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) and stemness markers.
• Exploration of genomic analysis of CTCs and patient-derived CTC cultures.

Main Results:

• CTC enumeration is established for prognosis.
• CTC subpopulations (e.g., EMT, stemness) are linked to invasion, metastasis, and treatment resistance.
• Genomic analysis of CTCs can identify novel therapeutic targets.

Conclusions:

• CTCs are valuable biospecimens, especially when tissue biopsy is not feasible.
• Liquid biopsies enable serial monitoring of cancer progression and treatment response.
• Patient-derived CTC cultures facilitate ex vivo therapeutic evaluation.