Chemo-specific designs for the enumeration of CTCs: advances in liquid biopsy Publications | December 18, 2020 Manuscript: Chemo-specific designs for the enumeration of circulating tumor cells: advances in liquid biopsy Review on chemo-specific nano/micro substrates for efficient CTC isolation, enabling liquid biopsy, metastasis detection, and real-time cancer monitoring. Advanced materials and chemo-specific designs at the nano- and micrometer scale have ensured revolutionary progress in next-generation clinically relevant technologies. For example, isolating a rare population of cells, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood among billions of other blood cells, is one of the most complex scientific challenges in cancer diagnostics. Achieving this level of exceptional specificity for extracellular biomarker interactions requires chemical tunability through the use of advanced materials and multistep reactions in both solution and insoluble states. This review delineates the chemo-specific substrates, chemical methods, and structure–activity relationships (SARs) of chemical platforms used for the isolation and enumeration of CTCs, thereby advancing the relevance of liquid biopsy in cancer diagnostics and disease management. We highlight the synthesis of cell-specific, tumor biomarker-based chemo-specific substrates utilizing functionalized linkers through chemistry-based conjugation strategies. The capacity of these nano- and micro-scale substrates to enhance interaction specificity and efficiency with targeted tumor cells is discussed in detail. Furthermore, this review emphasizes the importance of CTC capture and downstream processes involving genotypic and phenotypic CTC analysis in real time. These approaches enable early detection of metastasis progression, evaluation of chemotherapy treatment response, and monitoring of progression-free survival (PFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) in cancer patients. Royal Society of chemistry. View Manuscript Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

CTC profiling of PD-L1, HER2, and EGFR guides targeted cancer therapies. Publications | April 19, 2023 AACR 2023: Detection of PD-L1, HER2 and EGFR on circulating tumor cells in carcinoma patients. CTC analysis in 134 patients successfully detected PD-L1, HER2, and EGFR, proving its value as a real-time guide for targeted therapies. Background Small molecular inhibitors and immunotherapy have emerged as a novel alternative treatment regime for a variety of epithelial cancers. A large number of clinical trials are in progress worldwide to gauge the efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) or immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) against actionable targets such as receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) and program death ligand 1 (PD-L1). Although highly effective, the outcome of PD-L1 based ICI or TKI against RTKs is vitally contingent on the presence of PD-L1 or RTK expression on cancer cells. Determining druggable targets on the basis of solid biopsy could be often misleading, especially if a patient has progressed in spite of chemotherapy. This could be due to the intrinsic heterogeneity of tumor cells or therapeutic selection pressure or both, leading to alteration in the expression profile of the targets. Additionally, the immunohistochemistry result depends on a multitude of quality controls such as age and integrity of a biopsy sample, lab-to-lab variations in tissue block preparation, and degradation of targets due to chemical fixation methods. This unmet need of reliable detection and monitoring of actionable target expression could be addressed by circulating tumor cells (CTCs) based liquid biopsy tests. To this end, we have developed a CTC-based liquid biopsy assay to detect PD-L1, HER2, and EGFR expression in different epithelial cancers. Methods We retrospectively evaluated peripheral blood samples from a total of 134 carcinoma patients for the presence of CTCs expressing PD-L1, HER2, or EGFR markers respectively. Among these, 45% of patients had lung cancer, while 25% and 20% presented with breast, GI, and colorectal (CRC) malignancies. The remaining were gall bladder, ovarian, prostate, and head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. All lung cancer patients were analyzed for CTCs expressing PD-L1. CTCs were isolated from DCGI-approved OncoDiscover technology based on immunomagnetic targeting of epithelial cell surface molecules (EpCAM). EpCAM-targeted, magnetically isolated cells were considered CTCs on the basis of expression of cytokeratins, absence of CD45, and prominent presence of DAPI-stained nuclei. The presence or absence of aforesaid markers was determined using automated fluorescence imaging. Expression of PD-L1, HER2, or EGFR was detected by fluorescence microscopy using fluorescently labeled anti-PD-L1, HER2, or EGFR antibodies respectively. Based on fluorescence intensity, CTCs were binned as PD-L1, HER2, or EGFR negative for no detectable fluorescence signal, or weakly or strongly positive based on low or high fluorescence signal. Results Among the evaluated cohort, 51% of all CTCs showed the presence of PD-L1 expression, while 63% showed HER2-positive CTCs (all from breast cancer patients). 20% from the PD-L1 positive population showed strong PD-L1 expression. 78% of CTCs from lung cancer patients showed the presence of a detectable PD-L1 signal, while 66% of breast, GI, and CRC patients showed CTCs with PD-L1 expression. CTCs from HNC and gall bladder cancer patients showed the least PD-L1 expression (25% and 50% respectively). Among CTCs originating from different cancer types, breast cancer CTCs showed higher mean expression of PD-L1 compared to CTCs from colorectal cancer patients. A clear subset of CTCs for PD-L1 and HER2 expression was observed in lung and breast cancer patients respectively, suggesting heterogeneity in expression or the presence of different subclones within the same tumor type. Among all CTCs evaluated for EGFR expression, 50% showed the presence of detectable EGFR compared to the cut-off value. Conclusions CTCs isolated from cancers of epithelial origin showed the presence of PD-L1. Similarly, CTCs obtained from breast and lung cancer patients showed HER2 and EGFR expression respectively. Our data suggest that CTCs can be used as a real-time surrogate for molecular profiling of PD-L1, HER2, and EGFR expression, besides being a prognostic marker. Detection of PD-L1, HER2, and EGFR in CTCs offers a potential and viable alternative for immunotherapy or targeted therapy decisions in a vast majority of epithelial cancers. Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

PD-L1 on CTCs enables monitoring, recurrence tracking, and minimal residual disease. Publications | June 3, 2025 Circulating tumor cells and clusters exhibiting expression of PD-L1 in colorectal patients. High prevalence of PD-L1–positive circulating tumor cells in colorectal cancer highlights their role in minimal residual disease and recurrence monitoring. Background The role of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has been well established in predicting survival in metastatic settings, particularly in breast, colorectal, and prostate cancers. However, their clinical utility has been limited due to high costs, variability in sensitivity and accuracy, and the use of cutoff-based interpretations. The biological significance of CTCs—from extravasation and invasion to their contribution to tumor microenvironment dynamics and tumor burden—suggests greater clinical relevance than is currently applied in practice. Their role in monitoring minimal cellular residual disease (MCRD), especially in early-stage cancers post-surgery, remains underexplored, including decisions regarding therapy duration in diseases such as colorectal cancer and longitudinal monitoring for recurrence. Dynamic PD-L1 expression on CTCs may indicate incomplete tumor resection or treatment response and may also reflect cellular dormancy in circulation, potentially enabling immune evasion. In this study, we report the expression of PD-L1 on CTCs and CTC clusters in colorectal cancer patients. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 666 colorectal cancer patients (63.06% male and 36.94% female), spanning early- to late-stage disease, for the presence of CTCs with and without PD-L1 expression, as well as CTC clusters. CTCs were detected using the CDSCO-approved OncoDiscover platform in 1.5 mL of peripheral blood. Cells were classified as CTCs if they were EpCAM⁺, CK18⁺, DAPI⁺, and CD45⁻, and were identified using an automated Zeiss microscope system. Results At baseline analysis, 74.25% (n = 591) of patients had ≥1 CTC per 1.5 mL of blood. CTC counts ranged from 1 to 20 cells. Among patients with detectable CTCs, 74.62% (n = 441) exhibited PD-L1 expression. The highest proportion of CTCs (~25.86%, n = 352) was observed in the 61–70 years age group. CTC clusters were detected in 13.00% (n = 156) of patients, and notably, more clusters were observed during follow-up compared with baseline. The mean CTC count (including clusters) was 1.71, while the mean PD-L1–positive CTC count was 1.02. Conclusions PD-L1 expression on CTCs may contribute to their ability to persist in circulation through immune evasion, potentially enabling dormancy via surface protein overexpression that helps them avoid elimination by immune T cells. The CTC–PD-L1 assay shows strong potential for patient surveillance both before and after treatment in assessing minimal cellular residual disease. Further clinical studies in this direction are strongly warranted. View Publication Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

Ayurveda therapy reduces CTC counts and improves quality of life in cancer patients. Publications | June 7, 2022 ASCO 2022: Correlation of circulating tumor cells as a positive interventional biomarker in cancer patients Ayurveda therapy significantly reduced CTC counts and improved quality of life in a study of 72 patients across 17 cancer types. Background Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are a predictive biomarker for accounting for disease progression and for minimal residual disease (MRD). The effect of conventional anticancer therapy on CTC count is well documented; however, there is a paucity of data related to the effect of CAM-based modalities on CTC count in cancer patients. This study provides a preliminary observation about the effect of Ayurveda therapy on CTC count. Methods The retrospective study involved the stratification of 72 cancer patients undergoing cancer and maintenance treatment in a non-conventional, Ayurveda cancer treatment center in India. For monitoring of prognosis in cancer patients, CTC count was assessed in patients attending the Rasayu Cancer Clinic. Seventeen cancer types were included, namely, breast cancer, cervix and ovarian cancer, bladder, lung, head and neck squamous carcinoma, follicular thyroid, diffuse B-cell lymphoma, Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s, colorectal, hepatocellular, stomach with abdominal metastasis, metastatic prostate cancer, SCC with lung and skeletal metastasis, etc. A total of 33 (46%) male and 39 (54.1%) female patients of various types and stages were analyzed for the presence of CTCs retrospectively. CTCs were isolated and enumerated from 1.5 ml of the patient’s blood sample using the OncoDiscover Liquid Biopsy Technology platform enriched with an anti-EpCAM antibody immunomagnetic kit, approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). CTCs were confirmed for cytokeratin 18+ (CK18), DAPI+, and CD45-. Subsequently, CTCs were imaged using a Zeiss Axio Observer 7 fluorescence microscope. In 28 patients (50%), CTCs were accounted for at both pre- and post-treatment over a duration of 3-6 months. Twenty-eight patients were assessed for quality of life measured by the FACT-G questionnaire. The outcome was quantified for clinicopathological parameters: age/gender, cancer types, and CTC distribution. Results The mean and median CTC distribution was observed to be 15.34 and 12.5, respectively. Eight percent of patients showed the absence of any CTCs (6 subjects: 1 male and 5 females), while 32 males (96%) and 34 females (87%) showed the presence of CTCs. The correlation coefficient of CTC presence in males and females was significant at 0.4799 (p < 0.05). The Ayurveda Rasayana therapy showed a significant reduction in post-interventional CTC count (-3.94 ± 1.2) (p = 0.02). In addition, this group of patients also showed significant improvement in health-related quality of life as measured by the FACT-G questionnaire (p < 0.05). Conclusions CTCs are a validated predictive biomarker for accounting for minimal residual disease, both in pre- and post-cancer treatments. The enumeration of CTCs represents an effective prognostic biomarker in assessing disease progression. A reduction in CTC count was seen to be associated with an improvement in health-related quality of life (QoL), which needs to be investigated further to establish a firm correlation. Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

Actorius and ACTREC Partner to Advance Clinical Cancer Research. Press Release | February 5, 2026 Actorius and ACTREC Partner to Advance Clinical Cancer Research. A collaborative research initiative to study the practical utility of Circulating Tumor Cells and their capture and depletion from patient's blood as possible aid to adjunct therapeutics. Big step forward for Actorius Innovations and Research 🙌 Actorius recently signed an MOU with Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer(ACTREC) to collaborate on clinical studies and research spanning - practical utility of Circulating Tumor Cells and their capture and depletion from patient’s blood as possible aid to adjunct therapeutics. Slowing down or blocking metastasis cascade in early stage patients. Extremely bold and breakthrough innovation hypothesis. This partnership is about taking science closer to patients—generating meaningful real-world evidence, strengthening translational research, and asking the right clinical questions where it truly matters. The MOU was signed by Dr. Pankaj Chaturvedi , Director, ACTREC, and Dr. Jayant Khandare , Co-Founder & CSO, Actorius Innovations and Research. Excited about what lies ahead and the impact this collaboration can create together. Aravindan Vasudevan Rick Kamble Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

PD-L1 expressing CTCs help monitor pancreatic cancer progression and MRD. Publications | November 25, 2024 ISLB 2024: Expression of Programmed Death - Ligand 1 as a dynamic biomarker on circulating tumor cells in pancreatic cancer patients CTC detection with PD-L1 overexpression reveals aggressive pancreatic cancer and potential biomarker value for monitoring metastasis and disease progression. Introduction Pancreatic cancer shows a high mortality rate due to difficulties in early diagnosis and the absence of standardized guidelines for assessing suspicious pancreatic masses. Biomarkers such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and CA19-9 lack sufficient sensitivity and specificity for pancreatic cancer detection. While tissue biopsy provides a static signature of target protein expressions, including PD-L1, the enumeration and profiling of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) with cell surface markers can offer actionable targets for treatment. We present findings in pancreatic cancer where CTCs are associated with overexpression of PD-L1 as a dynamic marker for monitoring minimal residual disease (MRD) and disease progression, highlighting its role in the metastatic cascade. Methods Retrospectively, 50 pancreatic cancer patients were investigated for the presence of CTCs. Among them, 12 patients (24%) were in the early stage of disease, with ages ranging from 35 to 75 years. Sixty percent of patients were male (n = 30) and 40% were female (n = 20), while 76% (n = 38) were classified as late-stage cases. PD-L1 expression was evaluated using the approved OncoDiscover platform, which utilizes multi-component systems conjugated with anti-EpCAM antibodies on magnetic nanoparticles. CTC enumeration was performed using CD45–, EpCAM+, DAPI+, and CK18+ markers in 1.5 ml of peripheral blood. Functional assays assessed PD-L1 overexpression on CTCs using automated motorized Zeiss fluorescence microscopy. The sensitivity of the CTC and PD-L1 assay had been previously evaluated in other solid cancers. Results Out of 50 pancreatic cancer patients, 74% (n = 37) had at least one detectable CTC. Among these patients, 51% (n = 19) had one CTC, 30% (n = 11) had two CTCs, 14% (n = 5) had three CTCs, and 5% (n = 2) had four CTCs. The mean number of CTCs and clusters was 1.28 and 0.16, respectively. Additionally, 92% (n = 34) of patients demonstrated PD-L1 expression on CTCs. CTC clusters were observed in 19% of patients (n = 7). The mean PD-L1 expression on CTCs was 1.14. Conclusions CTCs with PD-L1 overexpression strongly suggest poor prognosis, potentially linked to activation of the metastatic cascade through immune system evasion. Larger studies are required to validate whether PD-L1-positive CTCs can serve as a reliable biomarker for the diagnosis and management of pancreatic cancer. View Publication Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

CTC and PD-L1 detection reveals residual disease despite clear radiological scans. Publications | June 4, 2024 ASCO 2024: Effect of circulating tumor cells in clinically stable patients on the conundrum of recurrence with cellular residual disease. CTC detection with PD-L1 expression reveals residual disease despite negative radiological findings in treated cancer patients. Background Despite no evidence of disease by radiological imaging, up to 30% of breast cancer cases are known to relapse after treatment with curative intent. The presence of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in stage I–II cancer patients signals the activation of extravasation and invasion processes leading to micro-metastasis and may result in poor outcomes. CTCs in blood circulation at any stage of cancer indicate detectable minimal cellular disease (MCD). Thus, the longitudinal investigation of patients with such biomarkers remains highly important for predicting recurrence, therapy escalation, and dose modifications. The expression of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) on CTCs is a dynamic biomarker, and these cells may escape elimination by the immune system, indicating progression toward a metastatic phenotype. Methods Retrospectively, a cohort of 20 cancer patients (including lung, colorectal, breast, stomach, etc.) who had recently undergone treatment were investigated for the presence of CTCs using the CDSCO-approved OncoDiscover platform. The platform contains multi-component systems conjugated with anti-EpCAM antibodies on magnetic nanoparticles. All patients clinically represented stable disease based on previous radiological findings. CTC enumeration was performed using CD45-, EpCAM+, and CK18+ markers, along with the evaluation of PD-L1 overexpression in 1.5 ml of peripheral blood using automated motorized Zeiss fluorescence microscopy. Results Despite no radiological evidence of disease and clinically stable status, 75% (n = 15) of the selected patients showed at least one CTC. Among them, 55% (n = 11) had one CTC, 5% (n = 1) had two CTCs, and 15% (n = 3) had three CTCs. In addition, 50% (n = 10) of patients demonstrated PD-L1 expression on CTCs, while one patient exhibited a CTC cluster. Conclusions Patients showed circulating residual disease (CRD) despite clinically stable disease, indicating possible progression from localized to secondary disease. Longitudinal monitoring of CTCs with PD-L1 expression may reveal real-time residual disease, progression, regression, and actual response to treatment. CRD monitoring can improve curative outcomes by potentially enhancing progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in solid cancers. Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

CTC monitoring detects early HNSCC in chronic tobacco users in Bangladesh. Publications | June 8, 2021 ASCO 2021: CTCs demonstrate a positive biomarker in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) in tobacco consuming population of Bangladesh. A study in Bangladesh found CTCs in 64% of HNSCC patients with chronic tobacco history, suggesting CTCs as a screening tool for early cancer detection. Background Tobacco consumption accounts for 1.6 million deaths annually in the South East Asia Region (SEAR). Notably, amongst the 10-20% of the global population consuming betel quid and tobacco, about an 81% concentration is in SEAR regions, including India and Bangladesh. The prevalence of HNSCC in these regions is rising alarmingly. For example, HNCs account for 23% of the total 156,775 cancer incidences in Bangladesh. Liquid biopsy tools are unavailable and expensive for most patients in this region. However, early cancer detection using tumor biomarkers, for example, circulating tumor cells (CTCs), is highly implicated. Furthermore, such biomarkers are being validated and have the potential for screening high-risk patients, such as those with a genetic predisposition or tobacco consumption. We report the first observational study in HNSCC patients in Bangladesh correlating the presence of CTCs to chronic tobacco consumption. Methods The study involved 70 cancer patients and 10 healthy volunteers (no prior cancer history). 87% of the patients had a specified history of chronic tobacco consumption. CTCs were isolated in 1.5 ml of blood using the OncoDiscover Liquid Biopsy Test, which is clinically approved by the Drug Controller General of India, and contains an enriching anti-EPCAM antibody immunomagnetic kit. CTCs are qualified as CK18+, DAPI+, and CD45-. Subsequently, CTCs were imaged using a Zeiss Axio Observer 7 and quantified for Mean Fluorescence Intensity (MFI) for clinicopathological parameters: age/gender, HNSCC sub-population, and CTC distribution. Results This is the 1st study on the Bangladesh phenotype accounting for the presence of CTCs in HNSCC patients. In this population, 34 males (66%) and 10 females (52%) accounted for 91 CTCs. CTC distribution was 0 to 6 with a mean and median of ~ 2.02 and 2, respectively. 25 patients (17 males, 8 females) were negative for any CTCs. Interestingly, 2 patients exhibited CTC clusters indicative of aggressive metastasis, in which 1 patient had no prior tobacco usage or family cancer history. There was no correlation between CTC presence in males (66%) and females (52%). Healthy volunteer samples exhibited no false positives. The MFI values ranged between 23 and 766, with mean and median MFI values of 157 and 96, respectively, indicative of CK overexpression on CTCs of HNSCC patients. Conclusions HNSCC patients with a history of chronic tobacco consumption in Bangladesh correlated with the presence of CTCs in 64% of the cases. Prospectively, CTCs may be validated as a biomarker for screening chronic tobacco users in Bangladesh to detect early cancers and HNSCC. Clinical Trial Information BMRC/Grants/2018/99 (1-100). Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

CTCs track residual disease and therapy response in breast cancer patients. Publications | June 6, 2023 ASCO 2023: Effect of circulating tumor cells distribution in treatment naive and treated patients with advance stage breast cancer on disease burden. A study of 417 breast cancer patients shows tracking circulating tumor cells (CTCs) effectively monitors therapy response and recurrence risk. Background Breast malignancies are a leading cause of cancer-related mortalities and show an ascending incidence rate. Despite advancements in our understanding of the disease, its clinical outcome is often dismal. This largely remains owing to the characteristic wide window of relapse, spanning months to decades after primary treatment. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the disease is an offered choice to detect metastatic progression and recurrence. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) have emerged as a powerful prognostic tool to predict the disease outcome in many epithelial cancers. CTCs are a real-time surrogate biomarker accounting for minimal residual disease (MRD) which is often missed in CT PET scanning. This leads to a progression of metastasis when the patient is often considered as 'clinically disease free'. Here, we analyzed the presence of CTCs in treatment-naive and chemo-recipient breast cancer patients. Methods In this retrospective study on 417 breast cancer patients, CTCs were isolated from 1.5 ml of blood using the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) approved OncoDiscover CTC test. This platform contains affinity-based magnetic nanoparticles to mediate EpCAM-based CTC isolation. CTCs were detected as CK18+, DAPI+ and CD45- cells based on an automated digital imaging platform. Results 42.6% (n=178) of patients were clinically at a progressive stage (stage II and III) and treatment-naive. On the other hand, 47.4% of patients received treatment including surgery and chemotherapy. CTCs were not observed in 5.6% (n=10) of the treatment-naive population, while 32% (n=75) of patients who received therapy did not show CTCs. The mean CTC number in treatment-naive patients was 15, while the mean CTC count in patients receiving therapy was drastically reduced to 2. This implied that therapy effectively countered the tumor progression and reduced the shedding of tumor cells in circulation. The distribution of CTC in treatment-naive patients exhibited a bimodal trend centered at values of 10 and 50, suggesting two distinct populations of patients with respect to CTC count. CTC count did not show any correlation with the age in both population groups. Surprisingly, CTC count in younger patients (20-50 years) was 50% higher compared to the older population (50-75 years). Conclusions The presence of CTCs in treatment-naive, progressive breast cancer patients indicated biologically aggravated disease. Although therapeutic intervention drastically reduced the CTC burden, their presence in a large population was suggestive of an MRD and the likelihood of recurrence after discontinuation of therapy. A distinct pattern of CTC occurrences in Tx naive and Tx recipient patients suggested that CTCs can be an important clinical indicator to monitor the therapy response, progression, and residual disease. Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

OncoDiscover detects CTCs, PD-L1 and clusters for longitudinal TNBC monitoring and care. Publications | August 30, 2026 Evaluation of circulating tumor cells expressing PD-L1 and CTC clusters at baseline and follow ups in triple-negative breast cancer A retrospective study of 180 TNBC blood samples evaluated CTC burden, PD-L1 expression and CTC clusters using the CDSCO-approved OncoDiscover platform, highlighting their potential for longitudinal disease monitoring and biomarker-guided management. Introduction: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive breast cancer subtype characterized by a high risk of recurrence and metastasis. Assessment of circulating tumor cells (CTCs), along with evaluation of PD-L1 expression and CTC clusters, provides prognostic, minimal cellular residual disease (MCRD), and predictive information. The duration of longitudinal CTC monitoring has not been established. This study evaluates the implications of detecting CTC burden, PD-L1 expression, and CTC clusters in TNBC patients at baseline and during follow-up for improved clinical outcomes. Methods: This retrospective observational study analyzed 180 peripheral blood samples from patients with TNBC, including 141 baseline (BL) and 39 longitudinal follow-up (FU) samples. Peripheral whole blood (1.5 mL) was processed using the CDSCO-approved OncoDiscover liquid biopsy platform, which employs antibody-mediated immunomagnetic enrichment and automated fluorescence microscopy to identify EpCAM⁺/CK18⁺/DAPI⁺/CD45⁻ CTCs. CTC positivity was defined as ≥1 confirmed CTC. Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate CTC burden, PD-L1-positive CTCs, and CTC clusters across BL and FU cohorts and age groups. Results: CTCs were detected in 114/180 (63.3%) patients, while 66 (36.7%) were CTC-negative. PD-L1-positive CTCs were identified in 62/114 (54.4%) CTC-positive patients (34.4% of the overall cohort), and CTC clusters were detected in 17/180 (9.4%) patients. The overall mean CTC count was 0.91, with higher values observed in FU than BL samples (1.18 vs. 0.81). Mean CTC cluster counts were also marginally higher in FU samples (0.10 vs. 0.09). Most CTC-positive patients harbored a single CTC (77/180, 42.8%), followed by two (14.4%), three (5.0%), and four (1.1%) CTCs. Patients aged 20–30 years demonstrated the highest mean CTC count (1.83), whereas those aged 71–80 years had the lowest mean CTC count (0.50). Conclusion: The OncoDiscover platform detected CTCs in nearly two-thirds of patients with TNBC and demonstrated that more than half of CTC-positive patients expressed PD-L1. Simultaneous assessment of CTC enumeration, PD-L1 expression, and CTC clusters represents a promising minimally invasive strategy for longitudinal disease monitoring and biomarker-guided management in TNBC. Monitoring changes in CTCs and the duration of longitudinal MCRD from baseline remains critical, although this is not yet well established. Know more Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

Micropatterned surfaces enable selective cancer cell capture and real-time monitoring. Publications | January 17, 2018 Manuscript: Selective Cell Isolation by Transferrin Functionalized Silane– Carbon Soot Mediated Superhydrophobic Micropatterns Transferrin-functionalized wettability micropatterns enable selective cancer cell capture and real-time monitoring for diagnostics and recurrence detection. Surfaces that facilitate selective cell adhesion using specific targeting moieties have significant implications in diagnostics, tissue engineering, and high-throughput screening. However, designing robust and spatially confined micropatterns for selective cell isolation on portable platforms remains highly challenging. Here, wettable silane (Si) micropatterns with covalently attached transferrin (Tf) for targeting Tf-overexpressing cancer cells are reported. These micropatterns are separated by carbon soot–based superhydrophobic regions, which transform the targeting sites into surface tension–confined “microwells.” These microwells facilitate the capture of human colorectal carcinoma cells (HCT116) and human cervical adenocarcinoma cells (HeLa) by confining their attachment to the wettable regions, thereby making the isolation and spotting of targeted cells more efficient. In addition, owing to its transparent nature, the Tf-conjugated wettability-based patterned chip enables real-time optical monitoring of cell adhesion, cell growth, and cell behavior. The specific cell isolation enabled by such surfaces has potential applications in developing cancer recurrence monitoring tests. Advanced Material Interfaces View Manuscript Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe

Assessment of circulating tumor cells and clusters expressing PD-L1 in urological cancers Publications | March 17, 2026 ASCO 26: Assessment of circulating tumor cells and clusters expressing PD-L1 in urological cancers High prevalence of PD-L1–positive circulating tumor cells in urological cancers, especially prostate cancer, indicating minimal residual disease and recurrence risk. Abstract Background Urological cancers, including prostate, bladder, kidney, testicular, and penile cancers, often fail to show symptoms or show only nonspecific symptoms at early stages. This leads to delayed diagnosis, treatment decisions, and outcomes. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) predict the outcome in metastatic prostate cancer (PC). Furthermore, in bladder cancer, CTC positivity is linked to muscle invasion, higher recurrence risk, and worse clinical outcomes. CTC PD-L1 expression could evade immune elimination. In spite of complete remission, a higher percentage of patients are known to recur in urothelial cancers. CTCs acting as minimal cellular residual disease (MCRD) are highly implicated, knowing their capacity to be dormant systemically with extravasation and invasion to distant organs. We analyzed the presence of CTCs with PD-L1 over-expression in urological cancers at baseline and follow-ups. Methods Retrospectively, a total of 359 urological cancer patients were evaluated for CTC positivity, including 307 at baseline and 52 follow-up samples. The cancer type distribution was prostate cancer (n = 139), bladder (n = 188), kidney (n = 10), testes (n = 2), penis (n = 8), urothelial (n = 12), etc. Ninety-five percent of the patients were male (n = 293) and 5% were female (n = 14), with most patients aged 61 to 80 years. CTCs expressing PD-L1, positive CTCs, and CTC clusters were analyzed using OncoDiscover® PD-L1 markers and a Zeiss fluorescence automated microscope. Demographics, cancer mean distribution, and CTC and cluster frequency were analyzed. Results Of the 359 patients, CTCs were detected in 68.2% (245/359) of patients, while PD-L1 over-expression on CTCs was present in 49.9% (179/359) of patients. However, CTC clusters were uncommon and occurred in 7.2% (26/359) of patients. Across cancer types (total CTCs = 436), prostate cancer accounted for higher CTCs with a mean CTC distribution of 2.18, while bladder was 0.74, urothelial 0.34, testes 0.18, kidney 0.74, and penis 0.38, respectively. CTC PD-L1 was highest in prostate cancer (46.1%) compared to other cancers, and CTC cluster prevalence was 1.8% in prostate cancer, urothelial (0.9%), and bladder (0.2%) cancers. In CTC-positive cases, 56.3% of patients had only one CTC, 27.8% showed two CTCs, and 8.2% had three. The mean across all patients was 0.6 for CTCs, 0.3 for CTC-PD-L1 positive, and 0.1 for clusters. Conclusions CTCs with PD-L1-positive overexpression were observed across urological cancers, being particularly higher in prostate cancer compared to bladder, kidney, and penis cancers. Many patients are known to recur in spite of complete remission, possibly due to the presence of aggressive CTCs in circulation that could evade the immune system. More studies assessing the presence of CTCs with PD-L1 expression are justified in urological cancers for minimal cellular residual disease and as prognostication. View Publication Stay One Step Ahead of Cancer. Get the latest news and innovations from Actorius delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe for regular updates Email* Yes, subscribe me for regular updates. * Subscribe