Onkológia 6/2010

Circulating and disseminated tumor cells

Metastatic disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. Regional lymph nodes are ussually first metastatic sites in majority of carcinomas, but tumors may also metastasize at an early stage hematogenously, without clinically detectable distant metastases. Approximately 30 − 40 % of patients with breast cancer and other epithelial tumors harbors occult metastases in the bone marrow, blood or lymph nodes. These occult metastases are part of the so-called micrometastatic disease. In the bone marrow they are known as disseminated tumor cells (tumor cells disseminated − DTC) while in the peripheral blood as circulating tumor cells (circulating tumor cells − CTCs). Although CTCs are disseminated tumor cells as well. Evaluation of micrometastatic disease may have prognostic significance, and their characterization for the presence of therapeutic targets could lead to personalized cancer treatment.

Keywords: circulating tumor cells, disseminated tumor cells, breast cancer.