A new method to visualize progression of lung cancer tumors in mice is helping to reduce the uncertainty around potentially curable lung cancer, according to a Stanford study.
In 2018, more than 100,000 Americans were diagnosed with lung cancer annually. Current imaging brain-imaging techniques, such as MRI scans, require live animals and are limited in their capacity to accurately detect tumors. The new blood-tumor mapping method, which relies on the blood fragments from mice, is also easier to use because it can be integrated into existing imaging systems.
“This approach of using multiple tumor biopsies to determine precise tumor growth trajectory and progression makes it much easier to zu. Don’t have to do multiple tests which could lead to false positive or false negative findings of patient recovered tumor,” said Vladmír Tolstoy, the paper’s senior author and a professor in the Department of Radiology.
To be able to accurately estimate patient survival and clinical progress of developed lung cancer, the method must be developed into a broad diagnostic tool. This could provide a lifesaver for doctors for overdiagnosing patients, the paper, which was published in the journal Scientific Reports, said.
Walker said that the new study could result in statistical patients being able to opt for more accurate diagnosis of lung cancer. It is important because highly effective treatments and improved outcomes are seen often with the use of these existing tools. With a new tool, the researchers can assess tumor progression in mouse models.
The academic team—led by the Stanford Body & Mind Sciences Institute’s Miluna Mohamedi-Mulk, who is also the vice president of Physiology and Physiology of Stanford Health—supervised the mouse model development effort.
Their work involved applying immunohistochemistry—basically testing the individual’s blood—to dissect the noses of mice exposed to short-term smoke. The main method used in mouse lung cancer development is to expose the entire mouse body to 19C, a common light- and air-conditioning-cooling compound. This is a method that used by hospital staff for evaluating healthy human subjects.
The researchers used data from two mouse models (one implanted with human lung tumor samples) to test how well immunohistochemical imaging could be used in mouse models of human lung cancer. The two mouse models also served as control because mice had newly injected tumors and thus no prior exposure to 19C was involved in the design of the mouse model.
While 19C disease dominates due to the exposure, Walker and Matthias Steinhauer suggest a promising alternative to 19C imaging with which to assess progression(…)In a mouse model of 19C-induced, 67% dying lung cancer cell lines, there was an increase in number of tumor suppressor cells, with an 87% relative decrease in mass of non-detectable cells.