Circulating tumor cells reveal early predictors of disease progression in patients with stage III NSCLC undergoing chemoradiation and immunotherapy

Emma Purcell; Zeqi Niu; Sarah Owen; Madeline Grzesik; Abigail Radomski; Anna Kaehr; Nna-Emeka Onukwugha; Heather Fairbairn Winkler; Nithya Ramnath; Theodore Lawrence; Shruti Jolly; Sunitha Nagrath

Cell Reports (Feb 2024)

Circulating tumor cells reveal early predictors of disease progression in patients with stage III NSCLC undergoing chemoradiation and immunotherapy

Emma Purcell,
Zeqi Niu,
Sarah Owen,
Madeline Grzesik,
Abigail Radomski,
Anna Kaehr,
Nna-Emeka Onukwugha,
Heather Fairbairn Winkler,
Nithya Ramnath,
Theodore Lawrence,
Shruti Jolly,
Sunitha Nagrath

Affiliations

Emma Purcell: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Zeqi Niu: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Sarah Owen: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Madeline Grzesik: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Abigail Radomski: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Anna Kaehr: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Nna-Emeka Onukwugha: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Heather Fairbairn Winkler: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Nithya Ramnath: Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA
Theodore Lawrence: Michigan Medicine, Department of Radiation Oncology, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA; Rogel Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA
Shruti Jolly: Michigan Medicine, Department of Radiation Oncology, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA; Rogel Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA; Corresponding author
Sunitha Nagrath: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Rogel Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA; Corresponding author

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 43, no. 2
p. 113687

Abstract

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Summary: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are early signs of metastasis and can be used to monitor disease progression well before radiological detection by imaging. Using an ultrasensitive graphene oxide microfluidic chip nanotechnology built with graphene oxide sheets, we were able to demonstrate that CTCs can be specifically isolated and molecularly characterized to predict future progression in patients with stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We analyzed CTCs from 26 patients at six time points throughout the treatment course of chemoradiation followed by immune checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy. We observed that CTCs decreased significantly during treatment, where a larger decrease in CTCs predicted a significantly longer progression-free survival time. Durvalumab-treated patients who have future progression were observed to have sustained higher programmed death ligand 1+ CTCs compared to stable patients. Gene expression profiling revealed phenotypically aggressive CTCs during chemoradiation. By using emerging innovative bioengineering approaches, we successfully show that CTCs are potential biomarkers to monitor and predict patient outcomes in patients with stage III NSCLC.

CP: Cancer

Published in Cell Reports

ISSN: 2211-1247 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Science: Biology (General)
Website: http://www.cell.com/cell-reports/home

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