New 3D-Printed Tumor Model Enables Faster, Less Expensive and Less Painful Cancer Treatment
Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:
An international team of interdisciplinary researchers has successfully created a method for better 3D modeling of complex cancers. The University of Waterloo-based team combined cutting-edge bioprinting techniques with synthetic structures or microfluidic chips. The method will help lab researchers more accurately understand heterogeneous tumors: tumors with more than one kind of cancer cell, often dispersed in unpredictable patterns.
Traditionally, medical practitioners would biopsy a patient's tumor, extract cells, and then grow them in flat petri dishes in a lab. "For 50 years, this was how biologists understood tumors," said Nafiseh Moghimi, an applied mathematics post-doctoral researcher and the lead author of the study. "But a decade ago, repeated treatment failures in human trials made scientists realize that a 2D model does not capture the real tumor structure inside the body."
The team's research addresses this problem by creating a 3D model that not only reflects the complexity of a tumor but also simulates its surrounding environment.
[...] First, the team created polymer "microfluidic chips": tiny structures etched with channels that mimic blood flow and other fluids surrounding a patient's tumor.
Next, the team grew multiple types of cancer cells and suspended these cell cultures in their own customized bioink: a cocktail of gelatin, alginate, and other nutrients designed to keep the cells cultures alive.
Finally, they used an extrusion bioprinter-a device that resembles a 3D printer but for organic material-to layer the different types of cancer cells onto the prepared microfluidic chips.
The result is a living, three-dimensional model of complex cancers that scientists can then use to test different modes of treatment, such as various chemotherapy drugs.
[...] The 3D-printed tumor models exemplify how new technology enables faster, less expensive and less painful treatments for serious conditions like late-stage breast cancer.
Journal Reference:
Moghimi, N., Hosseini, S.A., Dalan, A.B. et al. Controlled tumor heterogeneity in a co-culture system by 3D bio-printed tumor-on-chip model. Sci Rep 13, 13648 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-40680-x
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