Hematopoietic cell phenotyping using circulating cell-free markers
View Patent ↗The present invention provides methods of classifying cluster of differentiation (CD) marker phenotype for hematopoietic cancer cells using multiple circulating cell-free CD markers in bodily fluid. In other aspects, treatment and disease progression of particular hematopoietic cancers can be monitored by measuring the levels of CD and other markers i bodily fluids of a patient.
1. A method for predicting survival or remission duration in a patient with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), the method comprising:
(a) assaying a blood plasma sample from a patient diagnosed as having MDS to determine the level of circulating cell-free CD4 marker in said sample, wherein assaying comprises contacting the blood plasma sample with an antibody specific for CD4,
(b) correlating the level of circulating cell-free CD4 marker determined in step (a) with the patient's predicted survival or remission duration, and
(c) identifying the patient as
(i) having a longer predicted survival or remission duration if the level of cell-free CD4 is determined to be greater than 1029 U/μl, whereby a level greater than 1029 U/μl indicates that the patient will have a longer predicted survival or remission duration than is indicated by a level less than 1029 U/μl; or
(ii) having a shorter predicted survival or remission duration if the level of cell-free CD4 is determined to be less than 1029 U/μl, whereby a level less than 1029 U/μl indicates that the patient will have a shorter survival or remission duration than is indicated by a level greater than 1029 U/μl.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the antibody has a detectable label.
3. The method of claim 2 wherein the label is selected from the group consisting of a radioisotope, an enzyme, an enzyme substrate, a luminescent substance, a fluorescent substance, biotin, and a colored substance.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein assaying comprises performing a process selected from the group consisting of a sandwich immunoassay, a radioimmunoassay, immunoprecipitation, Western blotting, and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.