Lab on chip device to shed light on how cancer spreads

These rare circulating tumour cells (CTCs) can be found at low levels in a cancer patient’s bloodstream and are thought to be a primary cause of metastasis: the spread of cancer from one part of the body to another.

The new device - which is described in a Nature Methods paper – is expected to enable researchers to capture clusters of these cells and more clearly understand their role in the metastatic process.

The 3-by-1½-inch plastic chip through which a blood sample is passed consists of thousands of triangular microposts arranged in such a way that clusters passing between two posts will become trapped on the apex of a third central post and held in place by the balanced flow of fluid on either side.

Single CTCs and blood cells will pass right through without being captured. In addition, the slow rate at which a sample is passed through the device minimizes the possibility that clusters will be broken, distorted or escape.