Evaluation of Cancer Tumors in 3D Porous Bone Mimetic Scaffolds

Tissue engineering scaffolds are very promising technologies in regenerative medicine for replacement of many hard and soft tissues. This methodology consists of seeding patient's cells onto porous mesh like structures called scaffolds that are made of degradable and biocompatible synthetic and biological materials. The scaffolds themselves have two-tiered interconnected porosities; one forming the overall microstructure and the other being wall porosities of the membranes that form the microstructure. Transport of fluids and bio-molecular entities assisting in mineralization and tissue formation through interconnected porosities is vital for the regeneration of tissue. The specific hierarchical porosities of scaffolds enable biomineralization and growth of a bone-mimetic environment. In this study, we demonstrated that when osteotropic cancer cells such as prostate and breast cancer are seeded on these scaffolds, they form tumoroids that mimic in vivo like early stage of cancer cell colonization at the metastatic bone site. We demonstrate the use of nanoindentation technique to evaluate mechanical properties of live cancer cells that may be used to describe disease progression in the future. We also demonstrate use of finite element methods to develop robust cancer cell models. These studies suggest the use of mechanics-based approaches that may be used in future to evaluate biochemical behaviors of cancer progression.