Liquid Biopsies and Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) analysis
The current gold standard for the diagnosis and treatment of solid tumors is the collection of a tissue biopsy from the tumor site. Mutation tracking in tumor DNA and the prediction of the risk of metastatic relapse is a challenge in modern cancer therapy.
The investigation of liquid biopsies from whole blood samples is a promising new and noninvasive way to determine the required information for cancer management. Besides the analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) the isolation and identification of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has increasingly come into focus in this context.