Cancer Research and Treatment

Original Articles

Circulating Tumor Cell-based Molecular Responses Stratify EGFR-TKI Efficacy in Patients with EGFR-Mutant Lung Cancer: Seoyoung Lee, Chaeyeon Kim, Chang Gon Kim, Min Hee Hong, Mina Han, Wonrak Son, Gamin Kim, Hyeong Jung Woo, Hyun Young Shin, Jungmin Lee, Minseok S Kim, Hye Ryun Kim; Received June 29, 2025 Accepted January 26, 2026 Published online January 27, 2026; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2025.672 [Accepted]

Abstract PDF: Purpose
Circulating tumor cell (CTC) is a promising minimally invasive biomarker for EGFR-mutant non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the rarity of CTCs and limitations in their isolation and molecular characterization hinder their clinical utility, particularly in predicting treatment outcomes. This study evaluates the potential of CTC molecular response to predict treatment efficacy and guide therapy in patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC undergoing EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) therapy.
Materials and Methods
Seventy-seven patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC treated with EGFR-TKIs were enrolled. CTCs were isolated using continuous centrifugal microfluidic technology (CCM-CTCD) and compared with ctDNA and tissue biopsy for EGFR mutation analysis. Patients were categorized as CTC molecular responders or non-responders based on a ≥ 44.4% reduction in CTC count from baseline. Progression-free survival (PFS) and tumor burden changes were evaluated.
Results
CTC responders had significantly longer PFS (46.3 vs. 13.6 months, p=0.007) and greater tumor burden reduction (-37.7% vs. -35.2%, p=0.218) compared to non-responders. The CCM-CTCD demonstrated concordance with the cobas test while exhibiting higher sensitivity for EGFR mutation detection among 46 patients who underwent both tests simultaneously. Mutational discordance among tissue, ctDNA, and CTCs highlighted tumor heterogeneity. CTC profiling complemented traditional methods for identifying genomic alterations and predicting early progression.
Conclusion
CTC analysis using CCM-CTCD shows potential as a biomarker for predicting treatment response and prognosis in EGFR-mutant NSCLC. Stratification by CTC molecular response may inform risk-adapted treatment; however, its clinical utility remains to be established. Prospective studies are warranted to validate these findings and determine the role of CTC-guided decision-making.

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Gynecologic cancer

Identification of Patients with Recurrent Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Who Will Benefit from More Than Three Lines of Chemotherapy: Aeran Seol, Ga Won Yim, Joo Yeon Chung, Se Ik Kim, Maria Lee, Hee Seung Kim, Hyun Hoon Chung, Jae-Weon Kim, Noh Hyun Park, Yong Sang Song; Cancer Res Treat. 2022;54(4):1219-1229. Published online November 17, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2021.1010

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub

Purpose
This study aimed to identify patients who would benefit from third and subsequent lines of chemotherapy in recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC).
Materials and Methods
Recurrent EOC patients who received third, fourth, or fifth-line palliative chemotherapy were retrospectively analyzed. Patients’ survival outcomes were assessed according to chemotherapy lines. Based on the best objective response, patients were divided into good-response (stable disease or better) and poor response (progressive disease or those who died before response assessment) groups. Survival outcomes were compared between the two groups, and factors associated with chemotherapy responses were investigated.
Results
A total of 189 patients were evaluated. Ninety-four and 95 patients were identified as good and poor response group respectively, during the study period of 2008 to 2021. The poor response group showed significantly worse progression-free survival (median, 2.1 months vs. 9.7 months; p < 0.001) and overall survival (median, 5.0 months vs. 22.9 months; p < 0.001) compared with the good response group. In multivariate analysis adjusting for clinicopathologic factors, short treatment-free interval (TFI) (hazard ratio [HR], 5.557; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.403 to 12.850), platinum-resistant EOC (HR, 2.367; 95% CI, 1.017 to 5.510), and non-serous/endometrioid histologic type (HR, 5.045; 95% CI, 1.152 to 22.088) were identified as independent risk factors for poor response. There was no difference in serious adverse events between good and poor response groups (p=0.167).
Conclusion
Third and subsequent lines of chemotherapy could be carefully considered for palliative purposes in recurrent EOC patients with serous or endometrioid histology, initial platinum sensitivity, and long TFIs from the previous chemotherapy regimen.

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CircSETDB1 contributes to paclitaxel resistance of ovarian cancer cells by sponging miR-508-3p and regulating ABCC1 expression
Chunyan Huang, Li Qin, Sailan Chen, Qin Huang
Anti-Cancer Drugs.2023; 34(3): 395. CrossRef

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Development of Web-Based Nomograms to Predict Treatment Response and Prognosis of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer: Se Ik Kim, Minsun Song, Suhyun Hwangbo, Sungyoung Lee, Untack Cho, Ju-Hyun Kim, Maria Lee, Hee Seung Kim, Hyun Hoon Chung, Dae-Shik Suh, Taesung Park, Yong-Sang Song; Cancer Res Treat. 2019;51(3):1144-1155. Published online November 20, 2018; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2018.508

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub

Purpose
Discovery of models predicting the exact prognosis of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is necessary as the first step of implementation of individualized treatment. This study aimed to develop nomograms predicting treatment response and prognosis in EOC.
Materials and Methods
We comprehensively reviewed medical records of 866 patients diagnosed with and treated for EOC at two tertiary institutional hospitals between 2007 and 2016. Patients’ clinico-pathologic characteristics, details of primary treatment, intra-operative surgical findings, and survival outcomes were collected. To construct predictive nomograms for platinum sensitivity, 3-year progression-free survival (PFS), and 5-year overall survival (OS), we performed stepwise variable selection by measuring the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) with leave-one-out cross-validation. For model validation, 10-fold cross-validation was applied.
Results
The median length of observation was 42.4 months (interquartile range, 25.7 to 69.9 months), during which 441 patients (50.9%) experienced disease recurrence. The median value of PFS was 32.6 months and 3-year PFS rate was 47.8% while 5-year OS rate was 68.4%. The AUCs of the newly developed nomograms predicting platinum sensitivity, 3-year PFS, and 5-year OS were 0.758, 0.841, and 0.805, respectively. We also developed predictive nomograms confined to the patients who underwent primary debulking surgery. The AUCs for platinum sensitivity, 3-year PFS, and 5-year OS were 0.713, 0.839, and 0.803, respectively.
Conclusion
We successfully developed nomograms predicting treatment response and prognosis of patients with EOC. These nomograms are expected to be useful in clinical practice and designing clinical trials.

Citations

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Exploring the potential effects of acute respiratory failure on patients with early-stage bronchopulmonary cancer
Ziwen Lv, Qi Feng, Junhui Gu, Zhuo Gao, Dong Liu
Scientific Reports.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Comprehensive analyses of mitophagy-related genes and mitophagy-related lncRNAs for patients with ovarian cancer
Jianfeng Zheng, Shan Jiang, Xuefen Lin, Huihui Wang, Li Liu, Xintong Cai, Yang Sun
BMC Women's Health.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Peripheral and tumor‐infiltrating immune cells are correlated with patient outcomes in ovarian cancer
Weiwei Zhang, Yawen Ling, Zhidong Li, Xingchen Peng, Yazhou Ren
Cancer Medicine.2023; 12(8): 10045. CrossRef
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and early prediction of gestational diabetes mellitus using machine learning methods
Seung Mi Lee, Suhyun Hwangbo, Errol R. Norwitz, Ja Nam Koo, Ig Hwan Oh, Eun Saem Choi, Young Mi Jung, Sun Min Kim, Byoung Jae Kim, Sang Youn Kim, Gyoung Min Kim, Won Kim, Sae Kyung Joo, Sue Shin, Chan-Wook Park, Taesung Park, Joong Shin Park
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology.2022; 28(1): 105. CrossRef
Toward More Comprehensive Homologous Recombination Deficiency Assays in Ovarian Cancer Part 2: Medical Perspectives
Stanislas Quesada, Michel Fabbro, Jérôme Solassol
Cancers.2022; 14(4): 1098. CrossRef
Construction and validation of a transcription factors-based prognostic signature for ovarian cancer
Qingyuan Cheng, Liman Li, Mingxia Yu
Journal of Ovarian Research.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
Predicting preterm birth through vaginal microbiota, cervical length, and WBC using a machine learning model
Sunwha Park, Jeongsup Moon, Nayeon Kang, Young-Han Kim, Young-Ah You, Eunjin Kwon, AbuZar Ansari, Young Min Hur, Taesung Park, Young Ju Kim
Frontiers in Microbiology.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
Prognostic nomogram that predicts progression-free survival and overall survival of patients with ovarian clear cell carcinoma
Jiayi Li, Dongyan Cao
Frontiers in Oncology.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
Recent Advances and Future Directions of Diagnostic and Prognostic Prediction Models in Ovarian Cancer
Judan Zeng, Wenjiao Cao, Lihua Wang
Journal of Shanghai Jiaotong University (Science).2021; 26(1): 10. CrossRef
Sphingolipids as multifaceted mediators in ovarian cancer
MelissaR Pitman, Martin K. Oehler, Stuart M. Pitson
Cellular Signalling.2021; 81: 109949. CrossRef
Development and validation for prognostic nomogram of epithelial ovarian cancer recurrence based on circulating tumor cells and epithelial–mesenchymal transition
Jiani Yang, Jun Ma, Yue Jin, Shanshan Cheng, Shan Huang, Nan Zhang, Yu Wang
Scientific Reports.2021;[Epub] CrossRef
Prediction Models for the Clinical Severity of Patients With COVID-19 in Korea: Retrospective Multicenter Cohort Study
Bumjo Oh, Suhyun Hwangbo, Taeyeong Jung, Kyungha Min, Chanhee Lee, Catherine Apio, Hyejin Lee, Seungyeoun Lee, Min Kyong Moon, Shin-Woo Kim, Taesung Park
Journal of Medical Internet Research.2021; 23(4): e25852. CrossRef
Development of Machine Learning Models to Predict Platinum Sensitivity of High-Grade Serous Ovarian Carcinoma
Suhyun Hwangbo, Se Ik Kim, Ju-Hyun Kim, Kyung Jin Eoh, Chanhee Lee, Young Tae Kim, Dae-Shik Suh, Taesung Park, Yong Sang Song
Cancers.2021; 13(8): 1875. CrossRef
M2 Macrophage-Based Prognostic Nomogram for Gastric Cancer After Surgical Resection
Jianwen Hu, Yongchen Ma, Ju Ma, Yanpeng Yang, Yingze Ning, Jing Zhu, Pengyuan Wang, Guowei Chen, Yucun Liu
Frontiers in Oncology.2021;[Epub] CrossRef
Prognosis for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma patients treated with postoperative adjuvant transcatheter hepatic artery chemoembolization
Ji-Bin Liu, Kai-Jian Chu, Chang-Chun Ling, Ting-Miao Wu, Hui-Min Wang, Yi Shi, Zhi-Zhen Li, Jing-Han Wang, Zhi-Jun Wu, Xiao-Qing Jiang, Gao-Ren Wang, Yu-Shui Ma, Da Fu
Current Problems in Cancer.2020; 44(6): 100612. CrossRef
Can we predict who lives long with ovarian cancer?
Michael A. Bookman
Cancer.2019; 125(S24): 4578. CrossRef

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Redefining the Positive Circumferential Resection Margin by Incorporating Preoperative Chemoradiotherapy Treatment Response in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer: A Multicenter Validation Study: Joo Ho Lee, Eui Kyu Chie, Seung-Yong Jeong, Tae-You Kim, Dae Yong Kim, Tae Hyun Kim, Sun Young Kim, Ji Yeon Baek, Hee Jin Chang, Min Ju Kim, Sung Chan Park, Jae Hwan Oh, Sung Hwan Kim, Jong Hoon Lee, Doo Ho Choi, Hee Chul Park, Sung-Bum Kang, Jae-Sung Kim; Cancer Res Treat. 2018;50(2):506-517. Published online May 24, 2017; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2016.607

Abstract PDF PubReader ePub

Purpose
This study was conducted to validate the prognostic influence of treatment response among patients with positive circumferential resection margin for locally advanced rectal cancer.
Materials and Methods
Clinical data of 197 patientswith positive circumferentialresection margin defined as ≤ 2 mm after preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by total mesorectal excision between 2004 and 2009were collected forthis multicenter validation study. All patients underwent median 50.4Gy radiationwith concurrentfluoropyrimidine based chemotherapy. Treatmentresponse was dichotomized to good response, including treatmentresponse of grade 2 or 3, and poor response, including grade 0 or 1.
Results
After 52 months median follow-up, 5-year overall survival (OS) for good responders and poor responders was 79.1% and 48.4%, respectively (p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, circumferential resection margin involvement and treatment response were a prognosticator for OS and locoregional recurrence-free survival. In subgroup analysis, good responders with close margin showed significantly better survival outcomes for survival. Good responders with involved margin and poor responders with close margin shared similar results, whereas poorresponderswith involved margin hadworst survival (5-year OS, 81.2%, 57.0%, 50.0%, and 32.4%, respectively; p < 0.001).
Conclusion
Among patients with positive circumferential resection margin after preoperative chemoradiotherapy, survival of the good responders was significantly better than poor responders. Subgroup analysis revealed that definition of positive circumferential resection margin may be individualized as involvement for good responders, whereas ≤ 2 mm for poor responders.

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Tailored Strategy for Locally Advanced Rectal Carcinoma (GRECCAR 4): Long-term Results From a Multicenter, Randomized, Open-Label, Phase II Trial
Philippe Rouanet, Eric Rullier, Bernard Lelong, Philippe Maingon, Jean-Jacques Tuech, Denis Pezet, Florence Castan, Stephanie Nougaret
Diseases of the Colon & Rectum.2022; 65(8): 986. CrossRef
Colorectal Cancer Surgery Quality in Manitoba: A Population-Based Descriptive Analysis
Iresha Ratnayake, Jason Park, Natalie Biswanger, Allison Feely, Grace Musto, Kathleen Decker
Current Oncology.2021; 28(3): 2239. CrossRef

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