Circulating Tumor Cell
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Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are cells that have detached from a primary tumor and circulate in the bloodstream. CTCs may constitute seeds for subsequent growth of additional tumors (metastasis) in different tissues.
The detection of CTCs may have important prognostic and therapeutic implications but because their numbers can be very small, these cells are not easily detected [1].
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Ghossein RA, Bhattacharya S, Rosai J (1999). "Molecular detection of micrometastases and circulating tumor cells in solid tumors". Clin. Cancer Res. 5 (8): 1950–60. PMID 10473071.
