GenomeWeb reported from the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), where several research groups presented studies using Epic Science's no cell left behind™ platform for detecting and analyzing circulating tumor cells (CTCs). One of the studies featured in the article was one of our own, in which we used the Epic platform and next generation sequencing technology to isolate CTCs from experimental samples and perform single cell genomic analysis.
"Metastatic cancers are highly heterogeneous at the genetic level and can evolve during the course of disease under therapeutic pressure," said Murali Prahalad, Ph.D., president and CEO of Epic Sciences. "The ability to genetically analyze individual circulating tumor cells has the potential to dramatically impact the development of new therapies and better inform treatment decisions to more effectively fight these complex diseases."
The article also mentions studies presented at the meeting by some of our academic and pharmaceutical company partners. In one example, the researchers used the Epic platform to analyze CTCs from 45 blood samples from breast, ovarian, and non-small cell lung cancer patients. They also analyzed the expression of a particular cancer-driving gene in CTCs from each cancer type that may help predict how a patient may respond to specific types of cancer therapies.
Speaking to the GenomeWeb reporter, Epic Sciences President and CEO Murali Prahalad explained that one big advantage of analyzing CTCs with Epic’s platform is that a simple blood draw can be used track how a patient’s cancer changes over time. Epic’s technology also allows for precise analysis of individual CTCs, he says, rather than taking an average of all cells in a tumor biopsy or all cell-free DNA in the blood.
Methods that pool the genetic material from a biopsy homogenize the sample and cloak underrepresented mutations that may hold early signs of therapeutic resistance. Genetic analysis at the single cell level is expected to deliver the most accurate picture possible of how each individual patient's disease is developing, thereby enabling design of effective and tailored treatments.
"Single cell genetic analysis is a key advance in the circulating tumor cell field and a major step in fighting cancer," concluded Dr. Prahalad. "Epic has now enabled accurate tracking of tumor evolution and intrapatient heterogeneity to inform therapeutic development, therapy selection and drug resistance mechanisms."
Read more at GenomeWeb (subscription may be required).