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Updated: Oct 15, 2026
Portal Vein Injection of Colorectal Cancer Organoids to Study the Liver Metastasis Stroma
Published on: September 3, 2021
Hepatic tumor spread of colorectal cancer in a laparoscopic animal model
C N Gutt1, Z G Kim, T Gessmann
1Department of General and Vascular Surgery, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Theodor-Stern-Kai 7, 60590 Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
Background:
We devised a standardized animal model to study the impact of laparoscopic colorectal surgery on intrahepatic tumor cell growth.
Methods:
The technique of laparoscopic surgery in the rat was extended by endoscopic inoculation of colon cancer cells (CC531) into the portal vein (1 x 10(4), 5 x 10(4), 1 x 10(5), 3 x 10(5), 5 x 10(5) cells/ml) of WAG/Rij rats (n = 25). As controls, five animals underwent laparotomy and open intraportal inoculation of 5 x 10(4) cells/ml.
Results:
Hepatic tumor growth occurred after inoculation of 5 x 10(4), 1 x 10(5), 3 x 10(5), and 5 x 10(5) cells/ml. Extrahepatic tumor and conflating hepatic tumor was observed after the inoculation of 1 x 10(5), 3 x 10(5), and 5 x 10(5) cells/ml. Concentrations of 5 x 10(4) cells/ml injected either laparoscopically or via an open technique led to single hepatic tumor nodules. No tumor growth was seen after inoculation of 1 x 10(4) cells/ml.
Conclusions:
Laparoscopic intraportal tumor cell inoculation is a feasible technique to create hepatic metastases. The inoculation of 5 x 10(4) CC531 cells leads to reliable cell growth that can be used to investigate the impact of various laparoscopic techniques on tumor spread.
