Establishment and Its Utility of a Patient-Derived Cell Xenografts (PDCX) Model with Cryopreserved Cancer Cells from Human Tumor

Abstract

Patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models are powerful tools in cancer research, offering an accurate platform for evaluating cancer treatment efficacy and predicting responsiveness. However, these models necessitate surgical techniques for tumor tissue transplantation and face challenges with non-uniform tumor growth among animals. To address these issues, we attempted to develop a new PDX modeling method using high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC), a fatal disease with a 5-year survival rate of 29%, which requires personalized research due to its morphological, genetic, and molecular heterogeneities. In this study, we developed a new patient-derived cancer cell xenograft (PDCX) model with high engraftment efficiency (64%) that utilizes primary cancer cells instead of patient tissues. Primary cancer cells can be stably cryopreserved for extended periods (up to 485 days), and when transplanted into female NSGA mice, they maintain morphological and molecular characteristics without significant genetic differences compared to their original primary tumors. Furthermore, PDCX models can be easily produced using a syringe, allowing for uniform tumor sizes across multiple animals. Additionally, M2 PDCXs exhibited a significantly faster growth rate compared to M2 PDTXs. Consequently, our PDCX model offers a streamlined approach for evaluating personalized cancer treatments with minimal experimental variability.