Chip Captures Cancer Cells from Blood to Help Select Right Breast Cancer Treatment

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) accounts for about a quarter of all breast cancer cases and generally carries a good prognosis. This non-invasive form of the disease may or may not become life-threatening. However, between 10% and 53% of untreated cases can progress to invasive cancer, prompting doctors to recommend aggressive interventions such as mastectomy, lumpectomy with radiation, or hormone therapy. One of the biggest challenges in early breast cancer care is deciding how aggressively to treat patients with DCIS. Because there is no accurate way to predict which cases will progress, many women undergo surgery, radiation, or hormone therapy unnecessarily. Now, a new study suggests a simple blood test could help solve this problem.

The study conducted by scientists from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI, USA) and the University of Kansas Medical Center (Kansas City, KS, USA) found that circulating tumor cells (CTCs) found in patients’ blood may reveal whether DCIS is likely to evolve into invasive breast cancer. To make treatment more personalized, the research team used a microfluidic tool called the “labyrinth chip”, first developed at the University of Michigan, to separate and analyze rare cancer cells circulating in blood samples.

The chip isolates larger cancer and white blood cells from smaller ones, enabling detailed genetic analysis of these cells without invasive procedures. The study analyzed blood from 34 DCIS patients at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Researchers compared the genes active in circulating cancer cells with those in the patients’ breast tissue.

They identified four cancer subtypes in the tissue samples, two of which were also present in blood and linked to disease progression, chemotherapy resistance, and immune evasion. These findings, published in Science Advances, could help determine which patients require more intensive therapy and which might safely avoid it, preventing both undertreatment and overtreatment.

“Our goal is to identify biomarkers that distinguish patients who would benefit from aggressive interventions, including surgery, radiation, and anti-hormonal therapy, from those who may require only surgery or could safely forgo treatment,” said Dr. Fariba Behbod, co-corresponding author of the study.

Related Links:
University of Michigan
University of Kansas Medical Center