Current Advances in the Use of Tissue Engineering for Cancer Metastasis Therapeutics

Abstract

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and results in nearly 10 million deaths each year. The global economic burden of cancer from 2020 to 2050 is estimated to be USD 25.2 trillion. The spread of cancer to distant organs through metastasis is the leading cause of death due to cancer. However, as of today, there is no cure for metastasis. Tissue engineering is a promising field for regenerative medicine that is likely to be able to provide rehabilitation procedures to patients who have undergone surgeries, such as mastectomy and other reconstructive procedures. Another important use of tissue engineering has emerged recently that involves the development of realistic and robust in vitro models of cancer metastasis, to aid in drug discovery and new metastasis therapeutics, as well as evaluate cancer biology at metastasis. This review covers the current studies in developing tissue-engineered metastasis structures. This article reports recent developments in in vitro models for breast, prostate, colon, and pancreatic cancer. The review also identifies challenges and opportunities in the use of tissue engineering toward new, clinically relevant therapies that aim to reduce the cancer burden.

Nanostructured Biomaterials in Tumor Tissue Engineering: Regenerative Medicine and Immunotherapies

“…The invasive tumor cells that escape from the primary tumor site, through lymphatic or bloodstream circulation are able to localize and colonize bone tissues leading to ECM-cell and cellcell interactions with osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Thus, bone tumor metastasis is developed being associated with bone inflammations, osteoporosis and bone defects and destruction [33]. The application of multifunctional TTE scaffolds has been studied for this highly variant microenvironment.…”

“…Thus, the development of new biomaterials that can overcome these limitations and provide better biocompatibility, biodegradability, and immune responses are crucial for the future of TTE regeneration and immunotherapies. Also, genetic engineering technology has shown potential in promoting the expression of genes, antigens, and growth factors that stimulate innate and adaptive immunity for supporting antitumor effects and even regeneration [33,36]. However, optimizing the delivery of genes and growth factors, while ensuring their maintenance and efficient expression in the target cells are still challenging.…”

“…Physical and mechanical factors such as hemodynamic forces of blood flow, interstitial fluid flow, hydrostatic pressure, and fluid shear stress highly influence the fate of metastatic and circulating tumor cells. Thus, the development of a deeper understanding on tumor metastasis is based on TTE models that can effectively mimic the TME and the cell-ECM, cell-host cell, and cell-tumor cell interactions [33]. A great support in this direction is provided by tissue engineered bioreactors that simulate the biochemical and biomechanical processes in controlled conditions for tissue development.…”