Circulating Tumor Cells? CTC test? Why not all of us?

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Leighku
Leighku Member Posts: 26
edited April 2016 in IDC (Invasive Ductal Carcinoma)

I keep hearing about CTCs being tested in women with advanced breast cancer to determine how their treatments are working. I know this is a fairly new technique added to the standard set of scans but I'm curious why they wouldn't test every woman who has had breast cancer to determine early metastasis (or determine whether she is likely to have a recurrence and start some treatments to help prevent the onset).

If you can find CTCS in the blood stream...what is there to lose from testing early stagers....or at least ones with more dangerous, aggressive cancers?

I would love to know I have any floating around in my blood. A negative test would bring small peace of mind but a positive one could really help get a jump start on the fight.




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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited April 2016

    I often wonder the same thing. Would like to know how others reply.

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  • MsPharoah
    MsPharoah Member Posts: 1,034
    edited April 2016

    Check out the post by solfeo on the link below. I think it explains CTCs very well and is exactly what my MO told me and what I have researched.


    https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/105/topic...


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  • SpecialK
    SpecialK Member Posts: 16,486
    edited April 2016

    My understanding is that this type of test is used for metastatic disease due to the abundance of cells, but it is not sensitive enough to be used in early stage patients. This is the same logic that applies to something like a PET scan - it can't pick cancer up until it reaches a certain size, so is not appropriate to use universally. I do think the development of CTC technology is moving in the direction of being sensitive enough to detect recurrence or progression at an earlier point, but it is not there yet. My understanding of CTCs is that they also shed from the primary tumor so early stagers who have surgery would theoretically lack the source of the CTCs, those with mets out of the gate often do not have tumors surgically removed and since they continue to shed the CTCs measuring them is an indicator of their disease status.

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  • dtad
    dtad Member Posts: 2,323
    edited April 2016

    Leighku....My docs at a major NYC teaching hospital feel that are not reliable in early stage bc and lead to unnecessary stress. That being said I think we are all in the same boat about me not being comfortable with no screening. In todays day and age IMO its ridiculous that they haven't come up with something and just leave us hanging unless we progress to stage 4! We all hear you loud and clear! PS Maybe it should be addressed in PINKTOBER!

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  • sbelizabeth
    sbelizabeth Member Posts: 2,889
    edited April 2016

    Let's collaborate and design a machine, like a dialysis device, that can filter our blood and remove all the little stinkers. Star Trek technology.

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  • Hopeful82014
    Hopeful82014 Member Posts: 3,480
    edited April 2016
    I'll vote for that, sbelizabeth!
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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited April 2016

    I vote for the nano-robot that we inject into our blood somehow that can help our immune cells kill the baddies. Actually, I think it's already being worked on for future use in some cancers with interesting results.

    http://www.businessinsider.com/ray-kurzweil-on-nanobots-and-the-immune-system-2016-4

    Talk about Star Trek science. The NCI supports this research!

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  • Hopeful82014
    Hopeful82014 Member Posts: 3,480
    edited April 2016
    Fascinating - thanks, Claire.
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