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Evaluation of: Powell AA, Talasaz AH, Zhang H et al. Single cell profiling of circulating tumor cells: transcriptional heterogeneity and diversity from breast cancer cell lines. PLoS ONE 7(5), e33788 (2012). Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) may represent a possible useful tool to better define the prognosis of patients. The presence of CTCs can help to predict an increased risk for disease relapse, and they might be an early marker for treatment efficacy that could help in deciding treatment continuation. Cancer metastasis occurs when cells, shed from the primary tumor, enter the circulation and begin to grow in distant locations around the body. In metastatic stages, shed cells may differ from those of the primary tumor, as the tumor phenotype can change during the course of the disease. It is important to identify relevant targets expressed on these cells to provide clinical information on therapy choice, efficacy and drug resistance. Many efforts are now devoted to the characterization of the single cell. This article focuses on the possibility of profiling single CTCs in patients with breast cancer.

10.2217/FON.15.126 © 2015 Future Medicine Ltd It is a great pleasure to introduce this special focus issue on cardio-oncology. The potential cardiotoxic effects of anthracyclines and radiation have of course been known for decades, with considerable research undertaken to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Cardiovascular toxicities have been documented with most agents, including the newer, so-called ‘targeted therapies,’ which were initially considered to be have minimal cardiovascular adverse effects. In this context the speciality of cardio-oncology has emerged, with the scope of monitoring and treating cancer survivors for cardiotoxicity and also identifying potential cardiac side effects in novel cancer therapies. The monitoring of cancer survivors for cardiotoxicity continues to develop but clearly refinement and more research is needed. The subspeciality of cardio-oncology encompasses experts from both fields and also other disciplines and it is hoped that with this collaboration the quality of life of cancer survivors will improve. Dr Yang reviews the possible vascular effect of the newer chemotherapeutic agents [1] while Dr Tartarone discusses the cardiotoxicity concerns related to treatment with Crizotinib [2]. The cardiotoxic effects of radiation therapy are also a major theme in this issue, as Dr Yusuf discusses in his review. [3] Carotid artery inflammation associated with gemcitabine-based therapy is explored by Dr Chan et al. [4], while Dr Steingart discusses the effects of radiation on coronary artery inflammation [5]. Consequently over this time our understanding of cardiotoxicity has improved. Crucially over the last few years the importance of cardio-oncology as a separate discipline, in its own right, has become clear, both in terms of clinical care but also ongoing research. This is particularly important with improving survival rates for many cancers. This growing importance is reflected in a number of articles in this issue, including the interview with Dr Lenihan [6] and the commentary and review by Dr Elie Mouhayer, Dr Francis et al. and Dr Petek et al., respectively [7–9]. Dr Francis in particular touches on the importance of optimizing cardiooncology programs for cancer patients [8]. A key point that deserves attention is the importance of the early FORE ORD Special Focus Issue: Cardio-oncology