Molecular detection of circulating esophageal squamous cell cancer cells in the peripheral blood.

PURPOSE AND EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN To detect surgically resectable tumors earlier and improve the prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients, we examined deltaNp63 expression that was specific for squamous cell carcinoma in blood samples obtained from 43 esophageal cancer patients. RESULTS Seventeen of 33 (52%) patients with primary esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and 6 of 10 (60%) patients with postoperative recurrent squamous cell carcinoma had detectable deltaNp63 expression in their peripheral blood using deltaNp63-specific reverse transcription-PCR. Furthermore, deltaNp63 is a more sensitive marker compared with other commonly used tumor markers such as squamous cell carcinoma-associated antigen and carcinoembryonic antigen. CONCLUSIONS This approach would be potentially useful for the monitoring of patients with this aggressive disease.