In this session from Heidelberg MPS Day, Dr. Stefaan Verbruggen presents his work on developing advanced Organ-Chip models to explore how breast and prostate cancer cells interact with bone tissue, particularly osteocytes. His research aims to understand why these cancers metastasize to bone and how the bone’s internal cells contribute to tumor growth. By combining cancer cells with osteoblasts, osteoclasts, and osteocytes in microfluidic chips and applying controlled fluid flow, his team can recreate key aspects of the bone environment. This approach reveals differences from traditional 2D cell culture methods, showing more complex, physiologically relevant behaviors. Ultimately, Dr. Verbruggen’s work seeks to refine these models, incorporate patient-derived cells, and achieve more accurate predictions of cancer progression and potential therapeutic responses.
