High-Throughput Chemotherapeutic Drug Screening System for Gastric Cancer (Cure-GA)

Background: Three dimensional (3D) cell cultures can be effectively used for drug discovery and development but there are still challenges in their general application to high-throughput screening. In this study, we developed a novel high-throughput chemotherapeutic 3D drug screening system for gastric cancer, named 'Cure-GA', to discover clinically applicable anticancer drugs and predict therapeutic responses.

Methods: Primary cancer cells were isolated from 143 fresh surgical specimens by enzymatic treatment. Cell-Matrigel mixtures were automatically printed onto the micropillar surface then stabilized in an optimal culture medium for 3 days to form tumoroids. These tumoroids were exposed in the drug-containing media for 7 days. Cell viability was measured by fluorescence imaging and adenosine triphosphate assays. On average, 0.31 ± 0.23 g of fresh tumor tissue yielded 4.05×10⁶ ± 4.38×10⁶ viable cells per sample.

Results: Drug response results were successfully acquired from 103 gastric cancer tissues (success rate = 72%) within 13 ± 2 days, averaging 6.4 ± 2.7 results per sample. Pearson correlation analysis showed viable cell numbers significantly impacted drug data acquisition (p < 0.00001). Tumoroids retained immunohistochemical characteristics, mutation signatures, and gene expression consistent with primary tumors. Drug reactivity data enabled prediction of synergistic drug correlations. Additionally, a multiparameter index-based prognosis model for patients undergoing gastrectomy followed by adjuvant XELOX was developed, showing significant differences in 1-year recurrence-free survival rates between drug responders and non-responders (p < 0.0001).

Conclusions: The Cure-GA platform enables rapid evaluation of chemotherapeutic responses using patient-derived tumoroids, providing clinicians with crucial insights for personalized treatment strategies and improving therapeutic outcomes.