DETECTION OF EXPRESSION OF PROSTATIC SPECIFIC MEMBRANE ANTIGEN (PSMA) ON CIRCULATING TUMOR CELLS (CTC)

摘要

The invention provides a method for detecting prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) on circulating tumor cells (CTC) obtained from a patient suffering from prostate cancer, comprising: obtained from the patient to detect circulating tumor cells (CTC), and (b) determining the number of CTC expressing PSMA. The invention also provides a method for identifying a patient suffering from prostate cancer as a candidate for PSMA therapy, comprising: (a) performing a direct assay containing immunofluorescent staining and morphological characterization of nucleated cells in a blood sample obtained from a patient for detecting circulating tumor cell (STS), (b) determining the prevalence of a subset of STS expressing PSMA, and (c) comparing the prevalence of the STS subpopulation, express PSMA, with a reference value, and the prevalence of the CTC subsetting expressing PSMA, above the reference value, identifies the patient as a candidate for PSMA therapy. The invention also provides a method for predicting resistance against androgen receptor (AR) therapy in a patient suffering from prostate cancer, comprising: (a) performing a direct analysis containing immunofluorescent staining and morphological characterization of nucleated cells in a blood sample obtained from