Pre-clinical modeling of breast cancer: Which model to choose?

Abstract

Breast cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease with several morphological and genetic sub-types identified in recent decades. The recognition that the breast microenvironment plays an active role in dictating mammary epithelial cell behavior calls for a need for models which better define the in vivo environment to use in breast research. However, given that breast cancer is so diverse one model is unlikely to recapitulate all aspects of breast cancer progression. Here we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a variety of models available to researchers and outline their suitability to specific applications of breast cancer research.