Colorectal cancer triple co-culture spheroid model to assess the biocompatibility and anticancer properties of polymeric nanoparticles

Research Overview

Colorectal cancer is the third most common and second deadliest cancer worldwide. Combining nanotechnology with chemo- and immunotherapy is promising, but clinical translation has been held back by the absence of cell models that reliably predict in vivo performance.

This study built a 3D multicellular tumor spheroid model combining epithelial colon cancer cells (HCT116), human intestinal fibroblasts, and monocytes. The resulting spheroids reproduced several tumor features — cells organized spatially and produced their own extracellular matrix — giving nanomedicine developers a more demanding and more predictive preclinical test than monoculture.