mutation analysis in circulating tumor cells of patients with hormone receptor positive metastatic breast cancer.

In metastatic breast cancer (MBC), blood is a source of circulating tumor cells (CTCs). CTCs may serve as a ''real-time liquid biopsy" as they represent metastatic tumor genetics better than primary tumor. is one of the most important oncogenes in treatment-unresponsive breast cancers.

Neutrophil, Platelets, and Eosinophil to Lymphocyte Ratios Predict Gleason Score Upgrading in Low-Risk Prostate Cancer Patients.

Background: Several biochemical and clinical markers have been proposed for selecting patients for active surveillance (AS). However, some of these are expensive and not easily accessible. Moreover, currently about 30% of patients on AS harbor aggressive disease.

Transition from Hybrid Capture 2 to Cobas 4800 in Hpv detection: sensitivity and specificity for Cin2+ in two time periods.

Background: High-risk (HR) Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Tests for HPV detection differ in sensitivity and specificity. In this study, we evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of the HC2 HR HPV Test and the Cobas 4800 HPV Test in consecutive cervical samples collected from a referral population with a high prevalence of disease, using CIN2+ histology as clinical outcome.

Methods: Ten thousand two-hundred and thirteen consecutive cervical samples were assayed for HR-HPV in the Laboratory Medicine Division of IEO: 5140 from January 2012 to June 2013 with HC2 and 5073 from July 2013 to December 2014 with the Cobas HPV Test.

Detection of circulating tumor cells in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer undergoing neoadjuvant therapy followed by curative surgery.

Purpose: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) represent an independent prognostic factor in metastatic colorectal cancer, while their significance in early stages is still an open issue. The aim of the study is to investigate the role of CTCs in rectal cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CT-RT).

Methods: In this prospective single institutional study, cT3-4 and/or N+ rectal cancer was treated with neoadjuvant CT-RT.

TnI-Ultra assay measurements in cancer patients: comparison with the conventional assay and clinical implication.

The serial monitoring of cardiac troponin represents an effective approach for the early identification, assessment, and monitoring of chemotherapy-induced cardiac injury. Over the last few years new generations of troponin assays, referred to as sensitive and high sensitivity assays, able to detect very low concentrations of troponin, have been progressively released on different platforms. Some studies have assessed the comparability of the cTnI measurements with the new assays versus the conventional ones, but none of these in the oncological population.

Recovery and time to growth of isolates in blood culture bottles: comparison of BD Bactec Plus Aerobic/F and BD Bactec Plus Anaerobic/F bottles.

Background: This study was done to compare the growth of pathogens in paired aerobic/anaerobic blood culture bottles versus the use of only aerobic bottles, and to analyze the time to growth in both atmospheres.

Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the results of all blood cultures collected over a 2-y period for the diagnosis of central venous catheter-related bloodstream infections or other severe infections in oncology patients.

Results: Among the 487 isolates, 174 (35.

Prognostic value of circulating tumor cells according to immunohistochemically defined molecular subtypes in advanced breast cancer.

Background: Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease. Circulating tumor cell (CTC) enumeration might be useful to identify different risk categories within each molecular subtype.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 203 consecutive patients with metastatic breast cancer with baseline CTC enumeration performed with CellSearch (Veridex Corp, Warren, NJ) between March 2005 and July 2011.

The pitfalls of CA19-9: routine testing and comparison of two automated immunoassays in a reference oncology center.

We evaluated CA19-9 as a marker of various malignancies and compared the results of 2 commercial immunoassays. The Abbott ARCHITECT i2000 and Roche cobas 410 immunoassays were used on 500 consecutive samples to evaluate the frequency of positive results by cancer type and the correlation between assays. The patients were tested before or after surgery and/or during chemotherapy.

Prognostic value of circulating tumor cells in primary and metastatic breast cancer.

In patients with breast cancer, there is evidence correlating the presence of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) with disease-free survival, progression-free survival and overall survival. The detection of CTCs may be useful in gaining a better understanding of the mechanisms of tumor growth and in the improvement of patient management. This review analyzes the prognostic and predictive relevance of CTCs through the principal published studies, cytometric techniques and nucleic acid-based approaches to detect CTCs, phenotypic expression of specific receptors, molecular pathways and genetic signatures for potential tailored therapies.

Comparison of three distinct methods for the detection of circulating tumor cells in colorectal cancer patients.

The detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has considerable utility in the clinical management of patients with solid cancers. However, the phenotypic heterogeneity of CTCs and their low numbers in the bloodstream of patients means that no standardized detection method currently exists for these cells. This, together with differences in pre-analytical sample processing, has led to the collection and accumulation of inconsistent data among independent studies.

Changes of HER2 status in circulating tumor cells compared with the primary tumor during treatment for advanced breast cancer.

Background: HER2/neu status of tumor cells at metastatic sites in patients with advanced disease may differ from that of the primary tumor. Assessing the presence of target antigens on circulating tumor cells (CTCs) might affect treatment choice.

Patients And Methods: From June 2007 to October 2008, we collected 23 mL of blood from each of the 76 consecutive patients before and during chemotherapy to determine CTC numbers and HER2 overexpression.

Changes in circulating tumor cell detection in patients with localized breast cancer before and after surgery.

Background: Few data exist on the potential role of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in patients with operable breast cancer. If the presence of CTCs in early breast cancer could predict an increased risk for relapse, it might be an early marker for treatment efficacy and could help in deciding treatment continuation.

Methods: Thirty milliliters of peripheral blood was taken from 56 breast cancer patients before surgery and again 5 days after surgery, and the presence of CTCs was evaluated.

Modeling the relationship between circulating tumour cells number and prognosis of metastatic breast cancer.

Circulating tumor cell (CTC) count has been shown to be an independent predictor of progression in metastatic breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer. A cutpoint is generally used to identify favorable and unfavorable response groups. In this study, we propose an approach in which the number of CTCs is analyzed as a continuous predictor, to detect the shape of the relationship between CTCs and prognosis of metastatic breast cancer.