Abstract 2603: Single cell RNA sequencing-based identification of molecular drivers in circulating tumor cell cluster formation and lung metastasis

Introduction: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) mediate metastases, which account for 90% of solid tumor-related mortality. Compared to single cells, clustered CTCs mediate metastasis at a 20-100 times higher efficiency and are associated with lower overall survival in breast cancer (BC). We have recently identified a new mechanism of CTC cluster formation through cellular aggregation instead of cohesive shedding, and demonstrated that CTC clusters...