Circulating tumour cells: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Mark Bates; Bashir M Mohamed; Mark P Ward; Tanya E Kelly; Roisin O'Connor; Victoria Malone; Robert Brooks; Doug Brooks; Stavros Selemidis; Cara Martin; Sharon O'Toole; John J O'Leary

doi:10.1016/j.bbcan.2023.188863

Circulating tumour cells: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer. 2023 Mar;1878(2):188863. doi: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2023.188863. Epub 2023 Feb 15.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Emer Casey Molecular Pathology Research Laboratory, Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, Dublin 8, Ireland. Electronic address: mark.bates99@gmail.com.
² Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Emer Casey Molecular Pathology Research Laboratory, Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, Dublin 8, Ireland.
³ Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Emer Casey Molecular Pathology Research Laboratory, Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, Dublin 8, Ireland; Department of Pathology, Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland.
⁴ Cancer Research Institute, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia.
⁵ Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, Dublin 8, Ireland; Cancer Research Institute, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia.
⁶ School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Bundoora, VIC 3083, Australia.
⁷ Department of Histopathology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Emer Casey Molecular Pathology Research Laboratory, Coombe Women & Infants University Hospital, Dublin 8, Ireland; Trinity St James's Cancer Institute, Dublin 8, Ireland; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.

PMID: 36796527
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2023.188863

Abstract

This review is an overview of the current knowledge regarding circulating tumour cells (CTCs), which are potentially the most lethal type of cancer cell, and may be a key component of the metastatic cascade. The clinical utility of CTCs (the "Good"), includes their diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic potential. Conversely, their complex biology (the "Bad"), including the existence of CD45+/EpCAM+ CTCs, adds insult to injury regarding their isolation and identification, which in turn hampers their clinical translation. CTCs are capable of forming microemboli composed of both non-discrete phenotypic populations such as mesenchymal CTCs and homotypic and heterotypic clusters which are poised to interact with other cells in the circulation, including immune cells and platelets, which may increase their malignant potential. These microemboli (the "Ugly") represent a prognostically important CTC subset, however, phenotypic EMT/MET gradients bring additional complexities to an already challenging situation.

Keywords: Circulating Tumour Cells; Liquid Biopsy; Metastatic Cascade; Platelet Cloaking.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Humans
Neoplastic Cells, Circulating* / pathology