Transferrin receptor-based circulating tumor cell enrichment provides a snapshot of the molecular landscape of solid tumors and correlates with clinical outcomes.

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) captured from the bloodstream of patients with solid tumors have the potential to accelerate precision oncology by providing insight into tumor biology, disease progression and response to treatment. However, their potential is hampered by the lack of standardized CTC enrichment platforms across tumor types. EpCAM-based CTC enrichment, the most commonly used platform, is limited by EpCAM downregulation during metastasis and the low EpCAM expression in certain tumor types, including the highly prevalent and lethal NSCLC. In this study we demonstrate that Transferrin Receptor (TfR) is a selective, efficient biomarker for CTC identification and capture in patients with prostate, pancreatic and NSCLC. TfR identifies significantly higher CTC counts than EpCAM, and TfR Transferrin Receptor identifies circulating tumor cells in solid tumors.