[Potential Clinical Implications of Circulating Tumor Cells].

The circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are derived from primary or metastatic tumor lesions and can be detected in the peripheral blood. With certain specific features, CTCs can,to certain extent, reflect the progression and invasiveness of tumors. Detection of CTCs may provide a powerful and noninvasive approach for diagnosing neoplastic disease, identifying drug sensitivity, and enabling real-time treatment monitoring and prognosis prediction. Improvements in cell isolation and molecular identification will enable a broad range of clinical applications.