Breast Cancer Spheroids
Breast Cancer Spheroids - Related Videos
10:10
Long-term Culture of Human Breast Cancer Specimens and Their Analysis Using Optical Projection Tomography
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Cited by 11 •
2011
We have developed a collagen-based in vitro assay which promotes proliferation and invasion from samples of all breast cancer subtypes. Optical Projection Tomography, a three dimensional microscopy technique was utilised to visualise and quantify tumour expansion. This assay may be used to quantify drug response of individual tumour samples.
02:42
Preparation of Cancer Spheroid Blocks by Flash Freezing: A Procedure To Preserve Cancer Spheroids in Frozen Matrix Blocks
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2023
This video demonstrates the preparation of cancer spheroid blocks by flash freezing, a technique in which a tissue sample of interest is frozen to an ultracold temperature, restraining the spheroids inside the matrix.
08:11
An Orthotopic Mouse Model of Spontaneous Breast Cancer Metastasis
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Cited by 83 •
2016
An orthotopic breast cancer primary tumor model and surgical removal of primary tumor to extend mouse life to generate spontaneous metastasis are described. The tumor growth and progression are monitored and quantified by luciferase fluorescence imaging.
05:34
A Cancer Cell Spheroid Assay to Assess Invasion in a 3D Setting
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Cited by 112 •
2015
This method evaluates cancer cell invasion from spheroids into a surrounding 3D matrix. Spheroids are generated via the hanging drop culture method and then embedded in a matrix comprised of basement membrane materials and type I collagen. Invasion out of the spheroids is subsequently monitored.
07:13
Initiation of Metastatic Breast Carcinoma by Targeting of the Ductal Epithelium with Adenovirus-Cre: A Novel Transgenic Mouse Model of Breast Cancer
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Cited by 27 •
2014
Activation of latent mutations with adenovirus-Cre into the mammary ductal system results in a clinically relevant metastatic breast cancer. Incorporation of a YFP promoter allows tracking of distal metastatic tumor cells. This model is useful to study latent metastasis, anti-tumor immunity, and for designing novel immunotherapies to treat breast cancer.
FAQs
Cell-cell adhesion drives breast cancer cells to collect into organized aggregates under nonadherent conditions. This cohesion helps create distinct cellular regions rather than a uniformly distributed cell population. The resulting organization provides a way to examine how physical cell arrangement influences tumor growth and behavior, offering information that conventional two-dimensional cultures cannot represent as effectively.
As spheroids develop, oxygen and nutrients become unevenly distributed while waste accumulates differently across the structure. These gradients produce distinct cellular regions that may respond differently to experimental treatments. Studying this internal variation helps researchers evaluate how spatial conditions influence breast cancer growth, treatment response, and the development of therapy-resistant behavior.
Three-dimensional spheroids reproduce aspects of tumor organization that are not represented as realistically in flat, two-dimensional cultures. Their cell-cell contacts, internal gradients, and regional differences allow researchers to examine how spatial organization affects disease behavior. This comparison is especially useful when interpreting treatment responses that may depend on cellular location or local conditions within the model.
Because spheroids contain cells exposed to different internal conditions, they can reveal how cellular heterogeneity contributes to varied behavior within one model. Researchers can investigate whether spatially distinct regions show different patterns of growth or treatment response. This supports cancer research focused on why tumor cell populations do not behave uniformly under the same experimental conditions.
A basic workflow places breast cancer cells in low-attachment or other nonadherent conditions, where the cells can assemble through cell-cell adhesion instead of spreading across a surface. Once organized, the resulting structures can be examined for growth, invasion, treatment response, and interactions with the tumor microenvironment. The approach therefore links culture conditions directly to tumor-like organization.
Researchers may choose spheroids when they need drug-screening models that account for three-dimensional organization and internal variation. Compared with a flat culture, the structures allow treatment response to be considered alongside gradients, distinct cellular regions, and heterogeneous behavior. This makes them useful for evaluating how candidate therapies perform under conditions that more closely reflect tumor organization.
Breast cancer spheroids support investigations of invasion, treatment response, therapy resistance, and interactions with the tumor microenvironment. Their value comes from connecting these outcomes to the organization of cells within the structure. In cancer research, this helps researchers assess whether three-dimensional arrangement and cellular heterogeneity alter disease behavior or influence how experimental therapies perform.