A Review on The Applications of Dielectrophoretic based Microfluidic Devices in Cancer Cell Detection

DIELECTROPHORESIS (DEP) is an electrical phenomenon that explains the force experienced by a particle in non-uniform electric field, is a powerful, and label-free technique which can be used in microfluidics for particle manipulation. Dielectrophoretic forces acting on particles depend on several parameters like charge of the particle, geometry of the device, dielectric constant of the medium and particle, and size and shape of the particle. Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide, and research to improve the clinical management of cancers requires early detection and analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTC). Dielectrophoresis which depends on polarization of cells offers simple, in-vitro, label free, fast and accurate bio-particle manipulation technique, and is a promising technology in cancer prognosis and early diagnosis, specifically in separating circulating tumor cells. This article gives an overview on application of DEP principles in bio-particle manipulation, especially in detecting CTC, which is an important bio marker in early cancer detection.