AUTHOR=Templeton Abby R. , Jeffery Penny L. , Thomas Patrick B. , Perera Mahasha P. J. , Ng Gary , Calabrese Alivia R. , Nicholls Clarissa , Mackenzie Nathan J. , Wood Jack , Bray Laura J. , Vela Ian , Thompson Erik W. , Williams Elizabeth D. 

TITLE=Patient-Derived Explants as a Precision Medicine Patient-Proximal Testing Platform Informing Cancer Management

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2021.767697

DOI=10.3389/fonc.2021.767697

ISSN=2234-943X

ABSTRACT=<p>Precision medicine approaches that inform clinical management of individuals with cancer are progressively advancing. Patient-derived explants (PDEs) provide a patient-proximal <italic>ex vivo</italic> platform that can be used to assess sensitivity to standard of care (SOC) therapies and novel agents. PDEs have several advantages as a patient-proximal model compared to current preclinical models, as they maintain the phenotype and microenvironment of the individual tumor. However, the longevity of PDEs is not compatible with the timeframe required to incorporate candidate therapeutic options identified by whole exome sequencing (WES) of the patient’s tumor. This review investigates how PDE longevity varies across tumor streams and how this is influenced by tissue preparation. Improving longevity of PDEs will enable individualized therapeutics testing, and thus contribute to improving outcomes for people with cancer.</p>