ArticleHepatology communications2024
An indocyanine green-based liquid biopsy test for circulating tumor cells for pediatric liver cancer.
Article in Hepatology communications, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Review
- Considerations for the use of targeted fluorescence contrast agents to detect circulating cancer cell populations with diffuseJournal of biomedical optics · 2026Article
- A comprehensive overview of liquid biopsy applications in pediatric solid tumors.NPJ precision oncology · 2024Review
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundHepatoblastoma and HCC are the most common malignant hepatocellular tumors seen in children. The aim of this study was to develop a liquid biopsy test for circulating tumor cells (CTCs) for these tumors that would be less invasive and provide real-time information about tumor response to therapy.
methodsFor this test, we utilized indocyanine green (ICG), a far-red fluorescent dye used clinically to identify malignant liver cells during surgery. We assessed ICG accumulation in cell lines using fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry. For our CTC test, we developed a panel of liver tumor-specific markers, including ICG, Glypican-3, and DAPI, and tested it with cell lines and noncancer control blood samples. We then used this panel to analyze whole-blood samples for CTC burden with a cohort of 15 patients with hepatoblastoma and HCC and correlated with patient characteristics and outcomes.
resultsWe showed that ICG accumulation is specific to liver cancer cells, compared to nonmalignant liver cells, non-liver solid tumor cells, and other nonmalignant cells, and can be used to identify liver tumor cells in a mixed population of cells. Experiments with the ICG/Glypican-3/DAPI panel showed that it specifically tagged malignant liver cells. Using patient samples, we found that CTC burden from sequential blood samples from the same patients mirrored the patients' responses to therapy.
conclusionsOur novel ICG-based liquid biopsy test for CTCs can be used to specifically detect and quantify CTCs in the blood of pediatric patients with liver cancer.
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