Oral Presentation ASSCR, AGCTS, ISCT ANZ and Friends Joint Scientific Conference 2019

Organoids as a model for colorectal cancer: the first 50 patient lines (#12)

Rebekah M Engel 1 2 3 , Thierry Jarde 2 3 4 , Genevieve Kerr 2 3 , Wing Hei Chan 2 3 , Karen Oliva 1 , Helen E Abud 2 3 , Paul J McMurrick 1
  1. Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery, Cabrini Health, Malvern, Victoria, Australia
  2. Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
  3. Stem Cells and Development Program, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
  4. Centre for Cancer Research, Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Clayton, Victoria, Australia

Colorectal organoids are three-dimensional cultures of cells established from healthy patient tissues and tumours that remain biologically representative of the tissue from which they are derived. Commencing recruitment in August 2015, we have established organoids from healthy and tumour tissue for more than 50 patients who have undergone surgical resection for the treatment of CRC at Cabrini Hospital.  Each of the patients consented to this study are included in the prospectively maintained, clinician-led Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database. This provides access to comprehensive clinical records and treatment outcomes that can be correlated to the characteristics of their own tissue-derived organoid lines. The median patient age is 72 years with a range from 27 to 92 years, in equal proportions of male to female. We have successfully established lines from primary and metastatic tumours, adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma mucinous histological subtypes and both proficient- and deficient- mismatch repair systems. Patient-derived tumour organoids are a powerful tool for cancer research and as such we are utilising them for the development of drug response assays, testing routine cancer therapies including radiotherapy and chemotherapy with the aim of developing a pre-clinical test that can predict treatment outcomes for CRC patients, before they undergo therapy.

  • Have you presented your abstract at another international meeting?: No