Liquid Biopsy
Molecular oncological markers
What is a liquid biopsy?
Improve your forecast with better tracking
What are CTCs?
Circulating tumor cells (CTC) are tumor cells that have been shed from a primary tumor and transported around the body through the bloodstream.
CTCs are seeds for further growth of additional tumors (metastases) in distant organs.
Why analyze them?
Modern cancer research has shown that CTCs are derived from clones in the primary tumor.
Tissue biopsies are poor diagnostic procedures: they are invasive, they can not be used repeatedly, and they are not effective in understanding metastatic risk, the progression of the disease, and the effectiveness of treatment.
How are CTCs analyzed?
CTCs can be identified because it is possible to quantify the expression of specific genes (molecular markers) such as the EpCAM (epithelial cell adhesion protein) gene that is expressed mostly in CTCs.
On the other hand there are other genes that are used as molecular markers to identify the presence of CTCs such as cytokeratins, including CK8, CK20 and specific tumor markers (PSA, HER-2, etc.).
What technique is used?
The technique used for the quantification of CTCs is the qPCR or real-time PCR (quantitative polymerase chain reaction in English real time PCR)
What is analyzed?
In the total liquid biopsy of genolife, it quantifies the markers for the detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs), such as EpCAM, E-CAD, CK-7 and CK20. Markers for cell growth monitoring (Ki67, EGFR, VEGF). Hormonal markers (PGR, ER, COX2) and markers of targeted therapies (CDKN2B, PDL1 and HER-2)
What kind of information do you receive?
The result of this analysis takes 5 business days after receiving the sample. The information of the liquid biopsy provides additional information to the attending physician about the patient’s cellular behavior
Molecular markers
Function | |
Markers for the detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs). | |
Ep-CAM (EPCAM) | Epithelial cell adhesion. Molecular marker used for the detection of CTC. |
E-CAD (CDH1) | Epithelial cadherin (E-CAD) marker gene used for the detection of CTC |
CK-7 (KRT7) | Cytokeratin 7. Marker for CTC detection. |
| CK-20 (KRT20) | Cytokeratin 20. Marker for CTC detection |
Markers for monitoring cell growth. | |
Ki67 (MKI67) | Cell growth factor. Prognostic marker used for breast cancer. |
EGFR (EGFR) | EGF receiver. Growth marker present in breast, lung, colorectal cancer among others. |
| VEGF (VEGFA) | Growth factor that stimulates angiogenesis. |
Hormonal markers | |
PGR (PGR) | Progesterone receptor. Hormonal marker |
ER (ESR1) | Estrogen receptor Hormonal marker |
PCA3 (PCA3) | Molecular marker in tissue with cells derived from prostate cancer. |
| COX2 (PTGS2) | Cyclooxygenase-2 synthase of prostaglandin, promotes tumor progression, resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. |
Targeted therapy markers | |
CDKN2B (CDKN2B) | Cell growth regulator. Associated with ovarian cancer. |
HER-2 (ERBB2) | EGF receiver. Good diagnostic marker for breast, ovarian, lung, prostate, stomach and bowel cancer. |
PDL1 (CD274) | Suppression of the immune system. The high tumor expression of PDL1 is associated with greater tumor aggressiveness. |