Orthotopic lung cancer murine model by nonoperative transbronchial approach

Purpose The aim of this work was to establish a novel orthotopic human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) murine xenograft model by a nonsurgical, transbronchial approach. Description Male athymic nude mice and human NSCLC cell lines, including A549, H460, and H520 were used. Under direct visualization of the vocal cords, a 23-gauge blunt-tip slightly curved metal catheter was introduced into the trachea to the bronchus, and 2.5 × 10⁵ tumor cells mixed with Matrigel (BD Biosciences, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada) were administered into the lung. Mice were monitored using weekly microcomputed tomography scans for tumor formation. Evaluation When the tumor size reached more than 4 mm in diameter, the animals were euthanized, and the tumor tissue was evaluated histopathologically. Of 37 mice studied, 34 were confirmed to have tumor formation: 29 developed solitary tumors and 5 had multifocal lesions. There was no evidence of extrapleural dissemination or effusion. Conclusions Transbronchial delivery of tumor cells enabled the establishment of a novel orthotopic human NSCLC murine xenograft model. This clinically relevant preclinical model bearing a solitary nodule is of value for a variety of in vivo research studies.