Yan Jun, Fan Zhichao, Wu Xiufeng, Xu Min, Jiang Jiahao, Tan Changjun, Wu Weizhong, Wei Xunbin, Zhou Jian
Liver Cancer Institute, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University; Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion, Ministry of Education, Shanghai, 200032, People's Republic of China.
Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510515, People's Republic of China.
Cytometry A. 2015 Nov;87(11):1020-8. doi: 10.1002/cyto.a.22782. Epub 2015 Sep 10.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly malignant tumor characterized by rapid progression, poor prognosis, and frequent hematogenous metastasis. A minimally invasive diagnostic biomarker that can predict disease progression and treatment response would be of extraordinary benefit. Therefore, we have investigated whether the number of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is correlated with disease progression and treatment response in HCC. Here we report that the number of CTCs, monitored by in vivo flow cytometry (IVFC), is strongly correlated with disease progression and treatment response in a highly metastatic orthotopic nude mouse model of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-labeled HCC. Sorafenib treatment reduces the number of CTCs significantly. The decreased number of CTCs is consistent with low lung metastasis. This study has demonstrated a considerable clinical value of CTCs as a biomarker in predicting disease progression and monitoring therapeutic efficacy in patients with HCC.
肝细胞癌（HCC）是一种高度恶性的肿瘤，其特征为进展迅速、预后不良且常发生血行转移。一种能够预测疾病进展和治疗反应的微创诊断生物标志物将具有极大的益处。因此，我们研究了循环肿瘤细胞（CTC）数量是否与HCC的疾病进展和治疗反应相关。在此我们报告，在绿色荧光蛋白（GFP）标记的HCC高转移原位裸鼠模型中，通过体内流式细胞术（IVFC）监测的CTC数量与疾病进展和治疗反应密切相关。索拉非尼治疗可显著减少CTC数量。CTC数量的减少与低肺转移率一致。本研究证明了CTC作为生物标志物在预测HCC患者疾病进展和监测治疗疗效方面具有相当大的临床价值。
