In preclinical cancer research, scientists strive to make discoveries that can be as relevant as possible to the human condition to maximize the chances of their findings being successfully translated into the clinic. Their toolset includes a variety of preclinical models, ranging from two-dimensional and three-dimensional cell cultures to ex vivo tissue and in vivo animal models. When choosing the optimal model system, scientists must consider the fine balance between the relevance to cancer in an in vivo setting that is associated with more sophisticated animal models, and the considerable cost in time, effort and animal lives that comes with them.

In two studies published in Nature and Nature Biotechnology, the Lutolf group introduces a next-generation, refined organoid model of colon cancer that demonstrates unprecedented recapitulation of the complex features of human tumors and their microenvironment. To achieve this, in the paper published in Nature, the authors used mouse colon cells combined with scaffold-guided organoid development in microfluidic devices with spatiotemporal control of tumorigenesis aided by doxycycline-inducible and blue light-regulated cancer initiation. The resulting ‘mini colons’ retain the tumor pathophysiological characteristics, are gut-shaped and can be maintained long-term without the need for passaging.