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Application of tumor-educated platelets as new fluid biopsy markers in various tumors

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Abstract

The incidence of malignant tumors is increasing year by year. Early detection and diagnosis of malignant tumors can improve the prognosis of patients and prolong their life. Pathological biopsy is the current gold standard for diagnosis, but the results of pathological biopsy are affected by the sampling site and cannot fully reflect the nature of the disease. Moreover, the invasive nature of pathological biopsy limits repeated detection. Liquid biopsies are non-invasive and can be used for early detection and monitoring of tumors, which considered to represent a promising tool. Platelets make themselves to be one of the richest liquid biopsy sources by the capacity to take up proteins and nucleic acids and alter their megakaryocyte-derived transcripts and proteins in response to external signals, which are called tumor-educated platelets (TEPs). In this article, we will review the application of tumor-educated platelets in various malignancies (nasopharyngeal carcinoma, prostate cancer, lung cancer, glioblastoma, colorectal cancer, pancreas cancer, ovarian cancer, sarcoma, breast cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma) and provide theoretical basis for the research of TEPs in tumor diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.

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Funding

This work was supported by the 2021 National Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training program for College Students in China (Grant no. 202110632050).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Transfusion, Yaan People’s Hospital, Ya’an, 625000, China

    Yuhan Wang, Humin Zhang & Jie Xiong

  2. Department of Clinical Medicine, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, 646000, China

    Huang Li

  3. Department of Transfusion, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, 646000, China

    Jie Wang & Yuanshuai Huang

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  1. Yuhan Wang
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  2. Humin Zhang
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  3. Huang Li
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WY, ZH, HY participated in the conception and design of this study. LH, ZH carried out the study and collected important background information. XJ, WJ acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data. WY drafted the manuscript. HY revising it critically for intellectual content. All authors read and approved the final manuscript to be submitted.

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Correspondence to Yuanshuai Huang.

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Wang, Y., Zhang, H., Li, H. et al. Application of tumor-educated platelets as new fluid biopsy markers in various tumors. Clin Transl Oncol 25, 114–125 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12094-022-02937-1

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