Organoid Technology and Clinical Applications in Digestive System Cancer

• Published in: Engineering (Beijing, China) Vol. 9; no. 2; pp. 123 - 130
• Main Authors: Zhao, Xiaofang, Jiang, Youhai, Liu, Chunliang, Hou, Minghui, Wang, Hongyang, Fu, Jing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2022; International Cooperation Laboratory on Signal Transduction&Key Laboratory of Signaling Regulation and Targeting Therapy of Liver Cancer,Ministry of Education&Shanghai Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Tumor Biology,Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital,Second Military Medical University,Shanghai 200438,China%Cancer Research Center,The First Affiliated Hospital ofUSTC,Department of Life Sciences and Medicine,University of Science and Technology of China,Hefei 230031,China%International Cooperation Laboratory on Signal Transduction&Key Laboratory of Signaling Regulation and Targeting Therapy of Liver Cancer,Ministry of Education&Shanghai Key Laboratory of Hepatobiliary Tumor Biology,Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital,Second Military Medical University,Shanghai 200438,China%Department of Oncology,The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University,Zhengzhou 450052,China; Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center,Shanghai 200032,China; Elsevier
• Subjects: Digestive system cancer; Organoid; Precision medicine; Precision medicine; Digestive system cancer; Organoid
• ISSN: 2095-8099
• DOI: 10.1016/j.eng.2021.04.017

Cancers of the digestive system (DS), including esophageal, gastric, colorectal, liver, and pancreatic cancers, have a high incidence and mortality worldwide. Current cancer models cannot faithfully recapitulate the critical features of the original tumor, resulting in the failure of translation from basic research into clinical practice. More advanced cancer models are in urgent need of pathogenesis exploration and anticancer medicine development. Organoids are in vitro cultured three dimensional (3D) self-organizing organotypic structures derived from tissues and pluripotent stem cells, which faithfully mimic the histological features and preserve the genetic heterogeneity of the original tissues. Both normal and malignant organoids can now be efficiently established from the DS tissues of patients. In this review, we summarize the general methods to generate human DS organoids and their applications as a novel model in basic cancer research, preclinical medical practice, and precision medicine.