The presence of tumor cells in the bone marrow of primary breast cancer patients at surgery has been shown to be an independent prognostic indicator of relapse. Studies are underway to improve methods of detection, such as immunobead enrichment and real-time RT-PCR. This article reviews the current methodologies and technical improvements that are being investigated, and the authors discuss the major hurdles that should be overcome before analysis of minimal residual disease to predict prognosis can become standard practice in the clinical setting.
- Martin J Slade
- R Charles Coombes
