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Circulating tumor cell markers for early detection and drug resistance assessment through liquid biopsy

  • 0Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India.
Frontiers in Oncology +

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April 22, 2025

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April 22, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), particularly those undergoing epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), are key indicators of cancer metastasis and drug resistance. Identifying EMT-specific markers on CTCs is vital for personalized cancer therapies.

Area Of Science

  • Oncology
  • Cell Biology
  • Molecular Medicine

Background

  • Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are shed from primary tumors and disseminate through the bloodstream, offering insights into metastasis and treatment resistance.
  • Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a critical process enabling CTCs' migration, invasiveness, and development of chemotherapy resistance.
  • EMT involves loss of epithelial markers (e.g., EpCAM) and gain of mesenchymal markers (e.g., vimentin), regulated by transcription factors like Snail and Twist.

Purpose Of The Study

  • To review the clinical significance of CTCs in understanding cancer metastasis and drug resistance.
  • To highlight the role of EMT-derived CTCs in multidrug resistance (MDR).
  • To discuss CTC-specific surface markers essential for isolation and enrichment, focusing on EMT-associated markers.

Main Methods

  • Literature review focusing on CTCs, EMT, and cancer drug resistance.
  • Analysis of common and specific cell surface markers used for CTC identification (e.g., EpCAM, CD44, CD24, cytokeratins, HER2/neu, vimentin).
  • Discussion of immune-based isolation and enrichment techniques for CTCs.

Main Results

  • CTCs provide critical data on tumor evolution, metastasis, and resistance mechanisms.
  • EMT is strongly linked to increased CTC invasiveness and multidrug resistance.
  • Various surface markers (EpCAM, vimentin, CD44, CD24, cytokeratins) are employed for CTC detection, with EMT-specific markers being particularly informative.

Conclusions

  • Understanding CTCs, especially those undergoing EMT, is crucial for deciphering drug resistance.
  • EMT-specific markers on CTCs hold significant potential for halting cancer progression.
  • Targeting EMT-derived CTCs and their markers can pave the way for developing personalized cancer therapies.

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