TEDx Talk — Capturing cancer cells-Uncovering secrets for treatments
by Aravindan Vasudevan – CEO, OncoDiscover
Date: February 28, 2023
Cancer is in Circulation.
Circulating Tumor Cells
Circulating Tumor Cells are cells that are shed into the bloodstream by the primary tumor. CTCs have been investigated as diagnostic, prognostic and predictive biomarkers in many types of cancer.
CTC serve as seeds for growth of additional tumors (metastasis) in vital distant organs.
CTC counts are associated with unfavorable prognosis in early stage cancer patients.
CTC Clusters
CTC clusters are defined as groups of two or more aggregated CTCs found in the blood of patients with solid tumor.
CTC cluster have a survival advantage over individual CTC during their transit in the blood stream and an aggressive potential for colonization in the distant sites and can likely contribute to metastasis.
Cell and Cellular Division
The Cell is the basic building block of the human body and there are trillions of cells. Cells have the unique characteristic of replicating (or replicating themselves) via cell division and propagating to perform other critical functions for human survival. The cells also have a function which tells them when to stop dividing and undergo a process called Apoptosis (programmed cell death). This way the body clears the old cells and new cells every day.
Tumor and Angiogenesis
Due to various factors such as pollution, poor diet, smoking, radiation etc, some normal cells undergo mutation in a process known as carcinogenesis to become cancer cells. These cancer cells grow abnormally and indefinitely, subsequently congregating form a mass known as Tumor. These tumors survive by creating new blood vessels (for oxygen and nutrient supply) in a process known as Angiogenesis.
Cancer Metastasis.
The tumor is a mass of cancer cells from which some cells try to move away and invade the body via the circulatory system. These cells enter and circulate in the blood stream via a process known as Intravasation. These cells are known as Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC). Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC) have the ability to also get out of the blood stream via Extravasation. Thus, cancers cells can travel from one tissue/organ to another and potentially form a new tumor in the invaded tissue/organ. This process is known as metastasis and it is responsible for 90% of cancer related deaths worldwide.
Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC).
Each gram of tumor tissue sheds upto 1 million cancer cells into the blood stream each day. These Circulating Tumor Cells (CTC) serve as seeds for growth of additional tumors (metastasis) in vital distal organs. There is a positive correlation between CTC number and the clinical status of the cancer. OncoDiscover® CTC Test allows for regular monitoring of disease progression and can serve as an early indicator for relapse.
