Chenghao Li

Author    Correspondence author
Cancer Genetics and Epigenetics, 2024, Vol. 12, No.   
Received: 01 Jan., 1970    Accepted: 01 Jan., 1970    Published: 11 Oct., 2024

Colorectal cancer (CRC), the third most common malignancy worldwide, poses a serious threat to human health due to its high incidence and mortality rates. Although the development of radical surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy has improved the prognosis of CRC patients to some extent, postoperative recurrence and distant metastasis remain the leading causes of patient mortality. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop non-invasive, highly sensitive, and specific diagnostic methods for early detection and monitoring of CRC recurrence. This study investigates the application of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in the non-invasive diagnosis of CRC, evaluating the potential and value of CTCs as biomarkers for CRC. CTCs, tumor cells that detach from solid tumors and enter the peripheral blood circulation, form clusters and undergo distant metastasis.They are closely associated with the metastasis, recurrence, and prognosis of CRC. By detecting the quantity, phenotype, and molecular characteristics of CTCs, early diagnosis, recurrence monitoring, and prognosis evaluation of CRC can be achieved, providing more precise therapeutic guidance for clinical practice. This study offers a thorough exploration of the role of CTCs in the non-invasive diagnosis of CRC, providing new ideas and methods for early detection, recurrence monitoring, and prognosis evaluation of CRC, with significant clinical significance and application prospects.