Genomic alterations indicate tumor origin and varied metastatic potential of disseminated cells from prostate cancer patients.

ABSTRACT: Disseminated epithelial cells can be isolated from the bone marrow of a far greater fraction of prostate-cancer patients than the fraction of patients who progress to metastatic disease. To provide a better understanding of these cells, we have characterized their genomic alterations. We first present an array comparative genomic hybridization method capable of detecting genomic changes in the small number of disseminated cells (10-20) that can typically be obtained from bone marrow aspirates of prostate-cancer patients. We show multiple regions of copy-number change, including alterations common in prostate cancer, such as 8p loss, 8q gain, and gain encompassing the androgen-receptor gene on Xq, in the disseminated cell pools from 11 metastatic patients. We found fewer and less striking g

SUBMITTER: Holcomb IN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2613025 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature