Breast cancer therapy response detected early
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A drop in circulating tumor cells (CTCs) indicates that chemotherapy is working in patients with metastatic breast cancer. This can be established within a few weeks, after the first cycle of treatment, a Georgetown University team reported at the annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.
The researchers say that toxic side effects can be minimized and the effectiveness maximized throughout the course of treatment by periodic measurement of CTCs. The early detection of a poor treatment response allows the physician to switch the patient to another drug regimen that may be more effective.
Principal investigator Dr. Minetta C. Liu presented the study results for the first 54 of a planned 100 group of breast cancer patients who are having their treatment monitored by CTC levels.
Measurements were taken before treatment began and again 3 to 4 weeks later, after the first cycle of chemotherapy was completed. The researchers continued to collect blood samples every 3 or 4 weeks throughout treatment to monitor the patient’s response.
Liu said they have followed the women for as long as 2 years, comparing CTC levels with the findings of X-rays, CT scans and other conventional tests used to detect cancer progression.
Compared with women who had less than 5 CTCs per 7.5 milliliters, women who had higher CTC levels had a “greater than 5-fold increased chance of disease progression,” Liu said. “A 5-fold increase in the chance of disease progression is phenomenal.”
“We don’t necessarily need new drugs,” she added. “We just need to use the old ones in a smarter way. By measuring CTCs, we can see right away if the drug is working or not and limit toxicity.”
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