Detection of Cancer Stem Cells from Patient Samples

: Hakala, Sofia; Hämäläinen, Anna; Sandelin, Sanne; Giannareas, Nikolaos; Närva, Elisa

Publisher: MDPI AG

: BASEL

: 2025

: Cells

: CELLS-BASEL

: 148

: 14

: 2

: 27

: 2073-4409

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/cells14020148

: https://doi.org/10.3390/cells14020148

: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/485146757

The existence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) in various tumors has become increasingly clear in addition to their prominent role in therapy resistance, metastasis, and recurrence. For early diagnosis, disease progression monitoring, and targeting, there is a high demand for clinical-grade methods for quantitative measurement of CSCs from patient samples. Despite years of active research, standard measurement of CSCs has not yet reached clinical settings, especially in the case of solid tumors. This is because detecting this plastic heterogeneous population of cells is not straightforward. This review summarizes various techniques, highlighting their benefits and limitations in detecting CSCs from patient samples. In addition, methods designed to detect CSCs based on secreted and niche-associated signaling factors are reviewed. Spatial and single-cell methods for analyzing patient tumor tissues and noninvasive techniques such as liquid biopsy and in vivo imaging are discussed. Additionally, methods recently established in laboratories, preclinical studies, and clinical assays are covered. Finally, we discuss the characteristics of an ideal method as we look toward the future.

cells-14-00148-v3.pdf

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This research was funded by Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, Finnish Cultural Foundation, ImmuDocs Doctoral Pilot, iCANDOC Doctoral education pilot in precision cancer medicine, Svenska Kulturfonden, Turku Doctoral Programme of Molecular Medicine (TuDMM), and Drug Research Doctoral Programme (DRDP).