It is widely accepted that the earlier cancer is diagnosed, the more likely a patient is to survive. The problem with the deadliest forms of cancer, such as lung, colorectal or cervical cancer among others, is that patients often remain asymptomatic until later stages. If these patients aren’t seeing their physicians until stage 3 or 4 – the point in which most cancers begin spreading to other parts of the body (metastasizing), how can we help to improve mortality rates?
For patients who may be considered at-risk for certain types of cancers, early screening for Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) holds great promise for diagnosis of cancer prior to metastasis. In the recent INSERM study, “Sentinel Circulating Tumor Cells Allow Early Diagnosis of Lung Cancer in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease,” researchers screened patients considered at high-risk for lung cancer, in this case COPD patients and smokers, with the ISET by Rarecells Circulating Tumor Cell (CTC) detection system. Five of the COPD patients tested positive and were prioritized for annual CT screening. Within 1-4 years, nascent lung tumors were detected in all five patients and quickly removed.
Here we see that CTC screening can be useful in identifying which patients can benefit from more aggressive monitoring. This, in turn, allows clinicians to detect cancers at early stages where treatment can be more successful. In time, this approach holds the key to reducing mortality rates for some of the deadliest forms of cancer.