Rare Cell Detection Using Non-Rare Cell Data Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for detecting circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are limited by low sensitivity, high false positives, and inefficiency in enrichment processes, leading to incomplete analysis of CTCs due to physical loss and heterogeneity, which complicates the detection and characterization of these rare cells in cancer patients.
Innovation Solution
A method that utilizes similarity measures to detect rare cells by analyzing non-rare cells, employing detectable agents, and advanced imaging techniques to identify and characterize CTCs without physical enrichment, allowing for improved detection and characterization of CTCs through data analysis and minimal processing of blood samples.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If physical enrichment methods are used to detect CTCs, then detection sensitivity is improved, but false positives increase and physical loss of cells occurs
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of enriching for rare CTCs directly (positive selection), the patent uses negative selection by depleting common non-rare cells first. This inversion approach detects CTCs by what they are not, reducing false positives while maintaining sensitivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and removes common non-rare cells from the sample before detecting rare CTCs. By taking out the abundant background cells that cause false positives, the detection sensitivity for rare CTCs is preserved while reliability improves.
2Measurement precision
If physical enrichment methods are used to detect CTCs, then detection sensitivity is improved, but cell loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the enrichment strategy by depleting common cells rather than enriching for rare CTCs. This avoids the physical manipulation and potential cell loss associated with traditional enrichment methods while maintaining detection sensitivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical physical enrichment methods with a depletion-based approach that uses detectable agents and imaging. This substitution reduces mechanical stress on cells and minimizes physical loss during the detection process.
3Speed
If conventional detection methods are used, then detection speed is maintained, but measurement precision decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary depletion of common non-rare cells before the actual CTC detection. This preliminary action simplifies the subsequent detection step, improving measurement precision without significantly impacting overall detection speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection process is segmented into distinct steps: depletion of common cells, application of detectable agents, and imaging/detection. This segmentation allows each step to be optimized independently, maintaining speed while improving precision.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides seminal computational approaches utilizing data from non-rare cells to detect rare cells, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs). The invention is applicable at two distinct stages of CTC detection; the first being to make decisions about data collection parameters and the second being to make decisions during data reduction and analysis. Additionally, the invention utilizes both one and multi-dimensional parameterized data in a decision making process.