Patient-derived xenografts as models for personalized medicine research in cancer

Abstract

Basic research and clinical trials are essential components of the process of discovery and development of new drugs. The use of preclinical models is a key component in every aspect of drug development in cancer. Unfortunately, preclinical models often fail to capture the diverse heterogeneity of human malignancies, and the correlation between the antitumor activity of cytotoxic agents observed in these animal models and that observed in humans is poor. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in the application of preclinical cancer models which can actually recapitulate the clinical disease, including patient-derived xenografts (PDXs). PDX models maintain the phenotypic, genetic, and molecular characteristics of the original tumor and reflect tumor pathology. This review discusses the limitation of the conventional strategy of developing new drugs in oncology and proposes the PDX models as a powerful technology for the biological study of tumors and to evaluate the antitumoral effect of new compounds.