Analysis reveals epithelial-mesenchymal transition in circulating tumor cells and its correlation with breast cancer subtypes, suggesting predictive implications.
Background This study aimed to investigate the correlation between epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from peripheral blood and molecular characteristics of breast cancer. Methods We enrolled 48 breast cancer patients who underwent CTC testing at Shenzhen People's Hospital's Breast Surgery Department between September 2022 and May 2024. Intraoperative tissue samples underwent routine pathological and immunohistochemical examination. CTCs were detected using Canpatrol™ technology. Clinical data were analyzed statistically using SPSS 27.0. Categorical data were presented as percentages/frequencies. Comparisons used chi-square tests, with Yates correction for expected frequencies <5 but ≥ 1. Statistical significance was set at P<0.05 (α=0.05). Results EMT status showed no significant differences between ER-positive/negative, PR-positive/negative, HER2-positive/negative, Ki-67 ≥ 14%/<14%, tumor size, or lymph node metastasis groups (P>0.05). Luminal-type tumors exhibited lower EMT grades than other subtypes, while triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) showed higher EMT grades (P<0.05). Conclusion EMT grade correlates with luminal-type and TNBC subtypes, suggesting predictive value for these breast cancer classifications.
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Jiayu et al. (2025) studied this question.
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