TEL AVIV - Researchers have used brain cancer patients' own cells in a form of 3D printing material to make a model of their tumour to test the efficacy of potential treatments before using them for real inside the body.
The patient's blood is then pumped through the printed tumour, made with a compound that mimics the brain, followed by a drug or therapeutic treatment. "We have about two weeks test all the different therapies that we would like to evaluate that specific tumour, and get back with an answer - which treatment is predicted to be the best fit," Satchi-Fainaro said.
Researchers have often 3D printed tumour models to plan for surgery, but more recent innovations have focused on bioprinting, which uses live cells as a sort of ink to build up the layers.