Finding a needle in a haystack: A new technology is demonstrated to enrich circulating tumor cells (CTCs) with high efficiency by integrating an antibody‐coated silicon nanopillar (SiNP, see picture; gray) substrate with an overlaid polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic chaotic mixer (turquoise). It shows significantly improved sensitivity in detecting rare CTCs from whole blood, thus providing an alternative for monitoring cancer progression.

A platform for capture and release of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is demonstrated by utilizing aptamer grafted silicon nanowires. Here, single‐stranded DNA‐aptamers are generated via the Cell‐SELEX process to serve as capture agents, allowing specific capture and release of non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) CTCs from whole‐blood samples with minimum contamination and negligible disruption to CTC viability and functions.