title: Mesenchymal characterization: alternative to simple CTC detection in two clinical trials.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Breast cancer is one of the most common malignancies in women. Approximately 25% of patients with early-stage disease will develop metastatic recurrence. Two clinical trials were undertaken in order to detect circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in primary breast cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four-hundred patients with early breast cancer were enrolled in the trial. After enrichment from their peripheral blood, their CTCs were characterized by gene expression of cancer cell markers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  CTCs had a predominant epithelial phenotype in 8.75% of patients and de-differentiated characteristics (mesenchymal, stem phenotypes alone or both) in 37.6%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Tumor epithelial cells undergoing epithelial-mesenchymal transition give rise to cells with mesenchymal aggressive phenotype. Detection of mesenchymal and cancer stem cells, which are tumor-initiating cells, is more relevant than simple counting of CTCs to assess their presence in the blood of patients with breast cancer. This study will be the basis for future evaluation of the outcome of the disease and the prognostic value of early-detected CTCs.
authors: Astralab Clinical Laboratory, 7-11 Avenue de Lattre de Tassigny, 87000 Limoges, France. guislainebarriere@yahoo.fr
authors: Guislaine
authors: G
authors: Barriere
authors: Alain
authors: A
authors: Riouallon
authors: Joël
authors: J
authors: Renaudie
authors: Michel
authors: M
authors: Tartary
authors: Michel
authors: M
authors: Rigaud
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001483:Base Sequence; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology*; D017931:DNA Primers; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009360:Neoplastic Cells, Circulating / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers