ArticleScience translational medicine2019
In vivo liquid biopsy using Cytophone platform for photoacoustic detection of circulating tumor cells in patients with melanoma.
Article in Science translational medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 75 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
In Vivo Liquid Biopsy for Early Detection of Metastatic Melanoma
Ultrasound and Photoacoustic Imaging of Hydrocephalus
Who cites it
75 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Photoacoustic imaging for cutaneous melanoma assessment: a comprehensive review.Journal of biomedical optics · 2024Pooled it
- The immune phenotype of circulating tumor cells: from escape mechanisms to immunotherapy navigation.Biomarker research · 2026Review
- Label-free streamlined photoacoustic image guidance facilitates NIR-II photoablation in models of melanoma lung metastases.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2026Article
- Photoacoustic Imaging for Women's Gynecological Health: Advances and Clinical Prospects.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Circulating Tumor Cells: Emerging Frontiers in Cancer Technology.Expert reviews in molecular medicine · 2026Review
- Considerations for the use of targeted fluorescence contrast agents to detect circulating cancer cell populations with diffuseJournal of biomedical optics · 2026Article
- Nanoengineered Macrophages for in vivo Three-Dimensional Photoacoustic Imaging and Immunotherapy of Acute Lung Injury.International journal of nanomedicine · 2026Article
- Circulating tumor cells as biomarkers in melanoma: techniques, challenges, and clinical applications.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2026Review
- Liquid biopsy of circulating tumor cells: From isolation, enrichment, and genome sequencing to clinical applications.Histology and histopathology · 2025Review
- Redefining cancer care: harnessing circulating tumor cells' potential for improved diagnosis and prognosis.Cancer cell international · 2025Review
- Review of Non-Invasive Imaging Technologies for Cutaneous Melanoma.Biosensors · 2025Review
- Numerical Assessment of the Efficiency of a New Minimally Invasive Probe for the Isolation of Circulating Tumor Cells.International journal for numerical methods in biomedical engineering · 2025Article
- Enhanced cancer cell sorting using lab-on-a-disk pattern design with magnetic and centrifugal forces.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2025Article
- Liquid Biopsy for Cutaneous Melanoma: Opportunities and Challenges in Detecting and Characterizing Circulating Tumor Cells.Journal of dermato-oncology · 2025Article
- Liquid biopsy in gastrointestinal oncology: clinical applications and translational integration of ctDNA, CTCs, and sEVs.Oncology reviews · 2025Review
- Noninvasive in vivo photoacoustic detection of malaria with Cytophone in Cameroon.Nature communications · 2024Article
- TowardsFundamental research · 2024Review
- 3D Multiparametric Photoacoustic Computed Tomography of Primary and Metastatic Tumors in Living Mice.ACS nano · 2024Article
- Two-color diffuseJournal of biomedical optics · 2024Article
- Deep learning-enabled detection of rare circulating tumor cell clusters in whole blood using label-free, flow cytometry.Lab on a chip · 2024Article
15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Most cancer deaths arise from metastases as a result of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) spreading from the primary tumor to vital organs. Despite progress in cancer prognosis, the role of CTCs in early disease diagnosis is unclear because of the low sensitivity of CTC assays. We demonstrate the high sensitivity of the Cytophone technology using an in vivo photoacoustic flow cytometry platform with a high pulse rate laser and focused ultrasound transducers for label-free detection of melanin-bearing CTCs in patients with melanoma. The transcutaneous delivery of laser pulses via intact skin to a blood vessel results in the generation of acoustic waves from CTCs, which are amplified by vapor nanobubbles around intrinsic melanin nanoclusters. The time-resolved detection of acoustic waves using fast signal processing algorithms makes photoacoustic data tolerant to skin pigmentation and motion. No CTC-associated signals within established thresholds were identified in 19 healthy volunteers, but 27 of 28 patients with melanoma displayed signals consistent with single, clustered, and likely rolling CTCs. The detection limit ranged down to 1 CTC/liter of blood, which is ~1000 times better than in preexisting assays. The Cytophone could detect individual CTCs at a concentration of ≥1 CTC/ml in 20 s and could also identify clots and CTC-clot emboli. The in vivo results were verified with six ex vivo methods. These data suggest the potential of in vivo blood testing with the Cytophone for early melanoma screening, assessment of disease recurrence, and monitoring of the physical destruction of CTCs through real-time CTC counting.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.