Circulating tumor cell testing can be refined in patients with lung nodules.
Although there are no guidelines and consensus in China recommending the application of circulating tumor cell testing in the diagnosis of lung nodules. However, there are small samples of clinical studies confirming the application value of circulating tumor cells in the diagnosis and individualized treatment of lung nodules.
The main evaluation modalities for lung nodules currently include clinical information collection, imaging tests, tumor marker tests, functional imaging (PET-CT, etc.), and pathological biopsy. Circulating tumor cell detection is expected to enhance the early screening rate of lung cancer.
Some studies have shown that circulating tumor cells have high sensitivity (84%) and high specificity (86%) for the diagnosis of lung malignant nodules of 8-20mm, reflecting the value of the application of circulating tumor cells in the early screening of lung cancer.
Warm reminder: Currently there are tests that can not reach 100% diagnostic accuracy, even if the examination is done, it can only exclude the possibility of lung cancer from a certain probability, for lung nodules, regular follow-up is still indispensable.