Carcinotech's platform for personal cancer care
We spoke with Carcinotech to get a better understanding of how they are using CELLINK’s 3D bioprinting technology to play a key part in creating the future of health.
1. How is Carcinotech changing breast cancer research with 3D bioprinting?
Carcinotech’s advanced 3D-printed micro-tumours provide a platform for rapid, ethical, and accurate drug screening, pre-clinical and personalised medicine testing. Using patient-derived biopsies, primary cells, immune cells, and cancer stem cells we have developed our 3D-printed micro-tumours for breast cancer that are representative of the tumour microenvironment and the patient’s immune cells.
We have developed and expanded our technology into six cancer types including breast. Our 3D bioprinting process produces hundreds of breast cancer micro-tumours from a single patient biopsy. This allows for multiple drugs to be tested simultaneously. Our living tumours can be used to advance research into new drugs and treatments to aid in the fight against breast cancer, improving the quality of life and chance of survival for those suffering from this disease.
2. What are the implications for future cancer research and treatment?
Our vision here at Carcinotech is to be at the forefront of cancer drug testing and provide personalized medicine testing to each individual suffering from cancer, to better their chance of treatment and survival. Due to our focus on innovative technologies such as 3D bioprinting and automation, we can accelerate the development of effective treatments for cancer offering surgeons and oncologists the opportunity to test treatment options and create personalized treatment plans for each individual patient.
The use of 3D bioprinting has allowed us to develop our advanced technology which holds the potential to revolutionize cancer research, contributing to the rapidly developing sector of personalised medicine. We hope that in the future our models will allow every individual the opportunity to receive personal cancer care, improving treatments and increasing their chance of survival.
At Carcinotech our technology reduces the requirement of animal testing for drug development. We develop humanised models, tackling head-on one of the biggest issues facing the pharmaceutical industry – the use of animal testing. With the passing of the FDA Modernization Act, we hope to see a move towards the use of more physiologically representative humanised models in cancer drug screening and are proud to provide a more ethical alternative to current pre-clinical testing methods.
Watch this video for an understanding of Carcinotech's work:
