Analysis of Serum Exsomes in Patients with Colorectal and Breast Cancer

目标/具体目标 这一合作研究项目的长期目标是确定肿瘤特异性外体蛋白是否有助于乳腺癌和结直肠癌患者的诊断和/或治疗。值得强调的是，血清外切体在健康和疾病中的研究是一个新的研究领域，有许多悬而未决的问题。虽然已经在正常人和癌症患者的血清中发现了外切体，但这两个人群的血清外切体的水平和/或组成是否存在数量和/或质量上的差异尚不清楚。在开始这项分析之前，重要的是要确定基于年龄、性别和种族的正常人的血清外显子是否存在差异。这是重要的基线信息。然后，我们将确定正常人和癌症患者的血清外显子是否存在差异。我们将比较早期和晚期癌症患者，以及血清外切体的组成是否随着治疗的反应而变化。这些初步研究将有助于确定血清外切体在乳腺癌和结直肠癌患者诊断和治疗中的最终作用。

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS The long term goal of this collaborative research project is to determine whether tumor-specific exosomal proteins may aid in the diagnosis and/or management of patients with breast and colorectal cancer. It is important to emphasize that the study of serum exosomes in health and disease is a nascent field of inquiry and there are many unanswered questions. Although exosomes have been found in the serum of normal individuals and cancer patients, it is unknown whether there are quantitative and/or qualitative differences in the levels and/or the composition of serum exosomes in these two populations. Before embarking on this analysis, it will be important to determine whether there are differences in serum exosomes among normal individuals based on age, sex and race. This is important baseline information. We will then determine if there are differences in serum exosomes between normal individuals and cancer patients. We will compare patients with early stage and advanced cancers, and whether the composition of serum exosomes changes in response to treatment. These preliminary studies will help determine the ultimate role of serum exosomes in the diagnosis and management of patients with breast and colorectal cancer.