Arterial Blood, Rather Than Venous Blood, is a Better Source for Circulating Melanoma Cells.

ABSTRACT:

Background

CTCs provide prognostic information and their application is under investigation in multiple tumor types. Of the multiple variables inherent in any such process, none is more important to outcome than the appropriateness of the sample source. To address this question, we investigated CTCs in paired peripheral venous and arterial blood specimens obtained from stage IV uveal melanoma patients.

Methods

Blood specimens were obtained from both common femoral arteries and antecubital veins in 17 uveal melanoma patients with multiple hepatic metastases for CTC measurements.

Finding

CTCs were detectable with greater frequency (100%) and in larger numbers (median 5, range 1 to 168) in all arterial blood specimens than in venous samples (52.9%; median 1, range 0 to 8

SUBMITTER: Terai M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4740300 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature