Polymer nanofiber-based microchips for EGFR mutation analysis of circulating tumor cells in lung adenocarcinoma

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) detection, an approach considered to be "liquid biopsy", is a potential alternative method in clinical use for early diagnosis of solid tumor progression.

In this study, we developed a poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) - nanofiber (PN)-NanoVelcro chip as an efficient device for simple and rapid capture of CTCs from peripheral blood. We evaluated the device performance by assessing the capture efficiency and purity. Single CTC was isolated via laser microdissection system for subsequent genetic analysis, with an aim to find the concordance of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations between tumor tissue and CTCs.

PN-NanoVelcro chip exhibits great performance in capture efficiency and high purity. The genetic analysis results showed that most EGFR mutation in tumor tissue could also be detected in CTCs.

Compared to computed tomography image results, CTC detection can be implemented throughout the course of diseases and provides an accurate and earlier diagnosis of tumor progression, which make it possible for patients to acquire suitable and timely treatment.