Cancer models in preclinical research:A chronicle review of advancement in effective cancer research

Cancer is a major stress for public well-being and is the most dreadful disease.The models used in the discovery of cancer treatment are continuously changing and extending toward advanced preclinical studies.Cancer models are either naturally existing or artificially prepared experimental systems that show similar features with human tumors though the heterogeneous nature of the tumor is very familiar.The choice of the most fitting model to best reflect the given tumor system is one of the real difficulties for cancer examination.Therefore,vast studies have been conducted on the cancer models for developing a better understanding of cancer invasion,progression,and early detection.These models give an insight into cancer etiology,molecular basis,host tumor interaction,the role of microenvironment,and tumor heterogeneity in tumor metastasis.These models are also used to predict novel can-cer markers,targeted therapies,and are extremely helpful in drug development.In this review,the potential of cancer models to be used as a platform for drug screening and therapeutic discoveries are highlighted.Although none of the cancer models is regarded as ideal because each is associated with essential caveats that restraint its application yet by bridging the gap between preliminary cancer research and transla-tional medicine.However,they promise a brighter future for cancer treatment.

Mouse models of epithelial ovarian cancer for preclinical studies

Epithelial ovarian cancer(EOC) is the leading cause of gynecological cancer-related mortality in the developed world. EOC is a heterogeneous disease represented by several histological and molecular subtypes. Therefore, exploration of relevant preclinical animal models that consider the heterogenic nature of EOC is of great importance for the development of novel therapeutic strategies that can be translated clinically to combat this devastating disease. In this review, we discuss recent progress in the development of preclinical mouse models for EOC study as well as their advantages and limitations.

Study on the hepatocellular carcinoma model with metastasis

Hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is one of the most common causes of cancerrelated death around the world due to advanced clinical stage at diagnosis,high incidence of recurrence and metastasis after surgical treatment.It is in urgent need to create appropriate animal models to explore the mechanism,patterns,risk factors,and therapeutic strategies of HCC metastasis and recurrence.However,most of the established models lack the phenotype of invasion and metastasis in patient,or have unstable phenotype.To establish HCC models with stable metastasis phenotype requires profound understanding in cancer metastasis biology and scientific methodology.Over the past 3 decades,HCC models with stable metastasis have been extensively studied.This paper reviewed the history and development of HCC animal models and cell models,focusing on the screening and maintaining of metastatic potential and phenotype.In-depth studies using these models vastly promote the understanding of cellular and molecular mechanisms and development of therapeutic strategies on HCC metastasis.

Selecting an Appropriate Experimental Animal Model for Cholangiocarcinoma Research

Cholangiocarcinoma(CCA)is a highly aggressive biliary tree malignancy with intrahepatic and extra-hepatic sub-types that differ in molecular pathogeneses,epidemiology,clinical manifestations,treatment,and prognosis.The over-all prognosis and patient survival remains poor because of lack of early diagnosis and effective treatments.Preclini-cal in vivo studies have become increasingly paramount as they are helpful not only for the study of the fundamental molecular mechanisms of CCA but also for developing novel and effective therapeutic approaches of this fatal cancer.Recent advancements in cell and molecular biology have made it possible to mimic the pathogenicity of human CCA in chemical-mechanical,infection-induced inflammatory,implantation,and genetically engineered animal models.This review is intended to help investigators understand the particular strengths and weaknesses of the currently used in vivo animal models of human CCA and their related mod-eling techniques to aid in the selection of the one that is the best for their research needs.