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Nanodevices for the Detection of Cancer Cells
Published in Suvardhan Kanchi, Rajasekhar Chokkareddy, Mashallah Rezakazemi, Smart Nanodevices for Point-of-Care Applications, 2022
Approximately 90% of deaths from solid tumors are accredited to metastasis [45]. In the course of metastatic dissemination, a cancer cell from the primary tumor first conquers the surrounding tissue and then moves in the microvasculature of the blood (intravasation) and lymph systems, followed by survival and translocation by the bloodstream to micro-vessels in distant tissues, consequent exit from the bloodstream (extravasation) and survival in the microenvironment of distant tissues, presenting an appropriate foreign microenvironment for the development of a macroscopic secondary tumor [46]. The early detection of metastatic cancer cells within the bloodstream, referred to as circulating tumor cells (CTCs), may potentially affect cancer prognosis as well as diagnosis. As a portion of a liquid biopsy, CTCs have been studied broadly because of their potential applications. The detection of CTC may help us in understanding the molecular organization of a tumor in a slightly intrusive manner. Nonetheless, CTCs show relatively low abundance as well as heterogeneity, presenting technical challenges for CTC isolation and characterization. Recently, researchers have generally focused on the application of nanotechnologies for the sensitive detection of CTCs.
Biomedical Microdevices
Published in Sanjay V. Malhotra, B. L. V. Prasad, Jordi Fraxedas, Molecular Materials, 2017
Sharon Y. Wong, Mario Cabodi, Catherine M. Klapperich
Particularly in the field of cancer diagnostics, microfluidic technologies have been playing a larger role in both detection and therapy monitoring. In detection applications, cancer-specific protein biomarkers69 can be identified directly in patient samples. In addition, microfluidic devices are very adept at physically separating and sorting circulating tumor cells (CTCs), which are shed by tumors and are larger than red and white blood cells. This ability to sort cells according to their size is realized due to laminar flow effects only seen at the microscale.72,73 This strategy offers the potential to obtain “liquid biopies” from cancer patients at different time points, to provide up-to-date molecular information about the cancer, and how patients respond to therapy74–77 (Figure 11.6).
Microfluidics Device for Isolation of Circulating Tumor Cells in Blood
Published in Raju Khan, Chetna Dhand, S. K. Sanghi, Shabi Thankaraj Salammal, A. B. P. Mishra, Advanced Microfluidics-Based Point-of-Care Diagnostics, 2022
Ashis K. Sen, Utsab Banerjee, Sachin K. Jain, Amal Nath, Aremanda Sudeepthi
The primary cause of death in cancer patients is metastasis. Metastasis consists of several sub-processes. Initially, cancer cells infiltrate into the adjacent tissue, and then tumor cells migrate into the bloodstream; the process is termed intravasation. Next, these cells escape the immune system attack and exit the blood to enter the organ tissues, this process is termed extravasation. Finally, these cells proliferate and develop into a newly formed tumor, a secondary tumor. The whole process of metastasis is depicted in Figure 5.1. The cells that detach from the primary tumor and migrate into the bloodstream are known as circulating tumor cells (CTCs). Detection of CTCs in cancer patients' blood is a promising biomarker for cancer diagnosis, prognosis, stratification, and pharmacodynamics without invasive tissue biopsy [17]. Early detection and diagnosis of cancer cells are of paramount interest to provide clinical guidance on the treatment of cancer. A quantitative estimation of cancer patients' blood shows it to contain approximately 7 million leukocytes, nearly 5 billion RBCs, and less than about 200 CTCs in a sample of 1 mL of whole blood. These data bolster the statement that CTCs are rare cells in the blood and require sensitive and efficient techniques for the detection and isolation of CTCs from the patients' whole blood. Another quantitative estimation shows that 57% of 123 tested patients with metastatic prostate cancer had two or more CTCs per 7.5 mL of blood; however, only 32% of these patients had ≥10 CTCs per mL. Thus, to capture sufficient numbers of CTCs in a large number of patients for statistically reliable and reproducible diagnostic applications, it is likely that large volumes of blood (≥20 mL) need to be processed [18].
A potential way of detecting circulating tumor cells via laser scanning
Published in Journal of Modern Optics, 2022
Chunjian Yang, Zhongjun Jiang, Songpo Guo, Liang Wang
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), detaching from a primary tumor and carried around the body in the blood circulation, may become seeds for the subsequent growth of secondary tumors [1], which is the main cause of cancer-related deaths. Therefore, the detection of CTCs is critical for clinical prognosis and treatment efficacy evaluation. Because of the rarity in whole blood (typically in the order of CTC per mL [2]), CTCs need to be isolated and enriched before they can be characterized effectively. To date, there is only one US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved technology for CTCs detection, CellSearch. This method is based on positive selection using a magnetic ferrofluid that contains antibodies against epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM). After being isolated and enriched through the aforementioned biological way, CTCs are stained for expression of cytokeratin (CK) 8, 18, and 19 and enumerated via an analyzer by taking images of the cytokeratin stains. CellSearch has been used to diagnose breast, colorectal and prostate cancer [2,3]. However, the sensitivity, hence, the reliablitity of CellSearch may be reduced for the low expression level of EpCAM in some CTCs [4]. Besides, it typically costs about $900 and takes a week to deliver results, which is expensive and time-consuming. Apart from biological methods, the isolation of CTCs can also be accomplished based on physical properties of the cell, such as density [5] and size [6–9], which is simpler, faster and cheaper. Readers may refer to the recent review literatures [10,11] for more information on CTCs isolation and detection.
A review on magnetic polymeric nanocomposite materials: Emerging applications in biomedical field
Published in Inorganic and Nano-Metal Chemistry, 2023
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) escape from the primary tumor sites and travel in the peripheral bloodstream. They can be a liquid biopsy to reveal cancer stages and therapeutic response. CTCs are extremely rare (1–10 CTCs/mL) in blood, but leukocytes and erythrocytes are very high (millions per mL blood). Erythrocytes can be easily removed via lysis or density-gradient centrifugation. However, highly efficient capture and release of CTCs is a challenge to avoid leukocyte contamination.