Folate receptor-positive circulating tumor cells as a predictive biomarker for the efficacy of first-line pemetrexed-based chemotherapy in patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer.

ABSTRACT:

Background

There is a lack of well-established biomarkers to predict the efficacy of pemetrexed-based chemotherapy. In this prospective phase II study, we investigated the correlation of folate receptor (FR)-positive circulating tumor cell (CTC) level with the clinical outcomes of patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (nsNSCLC) when treated with pemetrexed-based chemotherapy.

Methods

A total of 98 nsNSCLC patients were enrolled. Peripheral blood was collected from each patient prior to initiation of treatment. FR-positive CTCs were enriched by immunomagnetic leukocyte depletion and quantified using ligand-targeted polymerase chain reaction (LT-PCR) method.

Results

Patients with relatively low CTC level (11-16 FU/3 mL, n=32) showed a significan

SUBMITTER: Chen X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7290650 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature