DETECTION OF MICROMETASTATIC CANCER CELLS IN BLOOD & BONE MARROW - BREAST CANCER

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. The best chance for cure of breast cancer occurs when malignancies are detected and treated at the earliest possible stage and appropriate surgical and adjuvant therapies are administered. Developing a test which could effectively identify early stage cancers has the potential to greatly improve patient outcomes. Following surgical resection of the primary tumor, systemic adjuvant therapy is administered to eliminate growth of all breast cancer cells that have spread outside of the breast. Currently, an educated guess is made as to which patients are most likely to have residual cancer located outside the breast. This guess is based on the size of the primary tumor and whether cancer cells are present in lymph nodes around the breast. Developing a test that could better identify those patients harboring cancer cells in their body, but outside the breast, has the potential to improve patient outcomes. The objectives of this study are to 1) Determine the efficacy of the methods for detecting cancer cells in the blood and bone marrow, 2) Assess the sensitivity of each method, and 3) Estimate the prevalence of cancer cells in the blood and bone marrow of breast cancer patients at different stages of the disease.