Modeling Cancer with Flies and Fish

Cancer has joined heart disease as the leading source of mortality in the US. In an era of organoids, patient-derived xenografts, and organs on a chip, model organisms continue to thrive with a combination of powerful genetic tools, rapid pace of discovery, and affordability. Model organisms enable the analysis of both the tumor and its associated microenvironment, aspects that are particularly relevant to our understanding of metastasis and drug resistance. In this Perspective, we explore some of the strengths of fruit flies and zebrafish for addressing fundamental cancer questions and how these two organisms can contribute to identifying promising therapeutic candidates. In this Perspective, Cagan et al. discuss how powerful genetic tools, a rapid pace of discovery, and affordability contribute to the strength of flies and zebrafish as models for cancer research. They highlight studies addressing fundamental cancer questions and consider how these organisms can contribute to identifying promising therapeutic candidates.