Endometrial Adenocarcinoma: Analysis of Circulating Tumour Cells by RT-qPCR.
BACKGROUND
Endometrial adenocarcinoma is a frequently occurring cancer in women, accounting for 42,000 deaths every year. Despite treatment with standard therapy, occurrence of remote metastases and local recurrences is high. Through help of RT-qPCR minimal residual disease could be detected and characterized, facilitating therapeutic decision making.


METHODS
A number of marker genes were first tested in model systems and genes that performed best, were consequently used for the examination of 13 blood samples from endometrial carcinoma patients.


RESULTS
Cytokeratin 19 and MIG7 were chosen for the analysis in patient samples. Both genes were found up-regulated in small tumours and in one large tumour, but no statistical correlations could be revealed between expression levels of these two genes and tumour characteristics.


CONCLUSIONS
There seems to be a coherence between gene expression and the stage of tumorigenesis, but the number of samples is still too small, to be able to obtain statistical significant differences.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Alexandra C
AC
Kölbl
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Rebekka
R
Wellens
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Julian
J
Koch
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Brigitte
B
Rack
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Stefan
S
Hutter
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Klaus
K
Friese
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany Udo.Jeschke@med.uni-muenchen.de.
Udo
U
Jeschke
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Ulrich
U
Andergassen
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000473:pathology*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053539:Keratin-19 / Q000032:analysis; D008875:Middle Aged; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D009360:Neoplastic Cells, Circulating; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*
D053539:Keratin-19; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; C482285:TOX4 protein, human
Endometrial adenocarcinoma; circulating tumour cells; marker genes; real-time PCR