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Updated: Apr 16, 2026

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Testing Targeted Therapies in Cancer using Structural DNA Alteration Analysis and Patient-Derived Xenografts
Published on: July 25, 2020
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Prioritizing therapeutic targets using patient-derived xenograft models.
K A Lodhia1, A M Hadley2, P Haluska1
1Department of Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta
|March 19, 2015
Summary
Patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) help personalize cancer therapy by modeling individual tumors. These models aid in identifying effective treatments and predicting drug resistance, advancing precision oncology.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Genomics
- Translational Medicine
Background:
- Personalized cancer therapy requires identifying and targeting key tumor-driving molecular targets.
- Validated molecular targets for cancer treatment remain limited despite advances in genomic medicine.
Purpose of the Study:
- To highlight the utility of patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) in advancing personalized cancer treatment.
- To address challenges and maximize the clinical insights gained from PDX models.
Main Methods:
- Development of PDX models using direct patient tumor implantation in immunocompromised mice.
- Focus on immune system humanization within PDX models.
- Emphasis on high-quality molecular annotation of PDX models.
Main Results:
- PDX models serve as powerful patient surrogates for evaluating individualized cancer therapies.
- Repeated and parallel sampling of PDX models reveals tumor clonal evolution.
- Clonal evolution insights can predict drug resistance mechanisms and inform therapeutic strategies.
Conclusions:
- PDX models are crucial for optimizing systemic cancer treatment delivery and therapeutic potential.
- Addressing PDX model challenges is key to maximizing their clinical applicability in precision oncology.
- PDX models facilitate the design of effective therapeutic strategies by predicting resistance and guiding treatment selection.

