To Study the Circulating Tumor Cells Filtered from The Breast, Colon and Prostate Cancer Patients Blood Using Multi-Color Flow Cytometry

Abstract

Background: Cancer ranks as a leading cause of death and an important barrier to increasing life expectancy in every country of the world. Tumour cells that have separated from the main tumour and permeated the bloodstream are known as circulating tumour cells (CTCs). These cells are indicators of tumour diagnosis, prognosis, residual disease, and metastasis because they share antigens or genetics with a particular type of tumour. One uncommon subpopulation of cells called CTCs serves as a seed for metastasis. CTCs are promising biomarkers for determining the current tumour status and potential for metastasis is thought to be CTCs.
Objectives: To study the circulating tumor cells filtered from the breast, colon and prostate cancer patients blood using multi-color flow cytometry. Material and Methods: This was a Prospective Study carried out in a Tertiary Care Centre. The study duration was 1 year, and the period was from November 2022 to November 2023 with the department of Pathology after obtaining clearance from the institutional ethics committee and written informed consent from the study participants. A total sample of 20 was used which included 5 cases of breast, colon and prostate cancer each and 5 healthy controls. 15 ml of peripheral blood was collected from 20 study participants using EDTA coated vacutainer under aseptic conditions. The percentage of cells was analysed by using flow cytometry. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: About three-fifth of study participants were males (60%) and two-fifth
(40%) were females. The mean age for the study group was 67 with a standard deviation of 10.71 years. Mean value of CD133 and CD44 was considerably higher among cancer patients as compared to healthy controls. Conclusion: The elevated expression of CD 44and CD 133 in different types of cancer patients is a promising marker for early diagnosis and disease prognosis. These findings may provide critical information for developing novel cancer and treatment strategies.