Abstract 1979: Low CD47 expression in specific populations of tumor macrophage fusion cells in blood correlates with progressive disease in metastatic cancers
Authors: Sonia Muthuraj, Massimo Cristofanilli, Saranya Chumsri, Susan Tsai, Raymond C. Bergan, Cha-Mei Tang, Daniel L. Adams
Journal: Cancer Research (2025)

Abstract Tumor associated macrophages are known to fuse with cancer cells resulting in the formation of a cellular phenomenon called tumor-macrophage fusion cells (TMFCs). TMFCs are a highly aggressive cell subtype that may move into circulation, evade immune surveillance, and possibly aid in seeding of metastatic sites. The formation of TMFCs involves CD47, a ubiquitous surface receptor that acts as a “don’t eat me” signal, interacting with the macrophage protein SIRPa, a down regulator of phagocytosis, and syncytin-1, a mediator of hyperploidy cancer fusion. In this analysis, we isolated circulating TMFCs from the blood of n=39 metastatic cancer patients (pts) to evaluate the expressions of CD47, SIRPa and syncytin-1 as it relates to stable or progressive disease via 30 day imaging by PET scan. We conducted a prospective pilot study of n=39 pts with pathologically confirmed metastatic breast (n=17), prostate (n=7), pancreas (n=7), or colon (n=8) cancer receiving standard of care systemic therapy. We isolated TMFCs from 7.5ml peripheral blood using a CellSieve microfilter, and stained with CD47, SIRPa, &amp; syncytin-1. TMFCs were identified based on large cell size (&amp;gt;30 µm) &amp; multinucleated structure, and were categorized into 4 distinct subtypes: A) &amp;gt;2 distinct non-contacting nuclei within a TMFC, B) 2 distinct non-contacting nuclei, C) 2 contacting nuclei, D) a single multinucleated nuclei. CD47, SIRPa, and syncytin-1 expressions were categorized as negative, low, or high. TMFCs subtypes and marker expressions were compared to pts’ clinical status (i.e. progressive, stable or responding) at first available PET/CT scans after blood draw (∼45 days). TMFCs were identified in 72% of pts (n=28/39), average 8 cells/sample, and ranged 1-77 cells. Of the TMFCs, 12% were subtype A, 11% as B, 11% as C, and 66% as D. CD47 expression was seen in 100% of TMFs, with low expression in 39% of subtype A cells, 58% subtype B, 39% subtype C, &amp; 62% subtype D. Notably, CD47 was significantly lower (p=0.010) in subtype B than other groups. Further, the expression of syncytin-1 in subtype B cells was significantly lower (p=0.02) than in other subtypes, and subtype D cells had 75% higher syncytin-1 localized to the nuclear regions. No correlations were found in the SIRPa expression and subtypes. Interestingly, progressing pts had 200% more TMFCs, more subtype B (83%), and significantly lower (p&amp;lt;0.001) CD47 expressing TMFCs than non-progressing pts. In this pilot study on the expression profiles of circulating TMFCs, it appears that specific subtypes of TMFC with low CD47 expression may be associated with progressive disease. Interestingly, this contrasts existing studies on primary tumors which often correlate higher CD47 with more aggressive cancers. This finding suggests that low CD47 cancer cells circulate blood in some pts with progressing disease and may be pertinent to efforts targeting CD47 in cancer. Citation Format: Sonia Muthuraj, Massimo Cristofanilli, Saranya Chumsri, Susan Tsai, Raymond C. Bergan, Cha-Mei Tang, Daniel L. Adams. Low CD47 expression in specific populations of tumor macrophage fusion cells in blood correlates with progressive disease in metastatic cancers [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2025; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2025 Apr 25-30; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2025;85(8_Suppl_1):Abstract nr 1979.