Preface

Tissue engineering began with the premise of utilizing polymer scaffolds mimicking tissue for culturing cells to replace or restore lost biological function. As the field of tissue engineering has expanded, researchers are increasingly applying tissue engineering concepts to develop models of disease pathology. In the last decade, there has been growing recognition in the cancer biology community that cancer pathology is not dictated simply by genetic mutations within cancer cells but also by the tumor microenvironment, the collection of chemical, mechanical, cellular, and biological cues surrounding those cells. The tumor microenvironment can be difficult to study in vivo, where a complex network of interactions makes it difficult to deconvolve the myriad of environmental cues. The intersection between tissue engineering principles and cancer biology provides unique opportunities to develop engineered models that can isolate and interrogate specific environmental cues within the tumor microenvironment, bridging the gap between two-dimensional cell cultures and animal models.

Since the first fledgling experiments by Prof. Bissell and her team in 1995, the field has rapidly matured alongside the progression of tissue engineering to the more comprehensive field of regenerative medicine. In the last decade in particular, there has been an explosion of interest in utilizing biomedical scaffolds and accompanying engineering methodologies to study the tumor microenvironment. Researchers have expanded from cell- and animal-derived scaffolds to synthetic polymers and composite materials designed to closely mimic extracellular matrix composition in the tumor niche. Manufacturing processes have evolved from thermosetting or coating approaches to methods that can provide spatial and geometric complexity, such as electrospinning and additive manufacturing. The complexity of culture models has expanded to include multiple cell types and fluid flow through cell patterning and microfluidic methods that can even lead to “organoid” cultures mimicking three-dimensional arrangements of cells and tissue. These systems have been applied to gain new insights into cancer physiology, immuno-oncology, and metastasis, and as models for drug screening. Given the significant progress over the last decade, we believed the time was right to collect and curate a book highlighting this research. To our knowledge, there are no books that currently fill this requirement.

The book is structured to progressively advance readers through materials design of increasing complexity. The first two chapters provide a brief overview of the text and the biology of the tumor microenvironment, outlining features that researchers target for in vitro replication. Chapters four through six describe different individual cues within the tumor microenvironment that can be modulated with biomaterial scaffolds and provide examples of how these can be used to study cancer biology and pathology. The next set of chapters, seven through eleven, provides information on more complex scaffold design, integrating multiple microenvironment cues. We then include a chapter on the unique challenges of imaging in these materials, which are often three-dimensional, necessitating concomitant advances in methodology. Though there are many applications of biomedical materials to tumor microenvironment research, we conclude by highlighting three important examples in immuno-oncology, metastasis, and as drug screening platforms.

We were excited to involve the diverse and vibrant biomaterials and tumor microenvironment communities in crafting this work. Authors were chosen to represent those most knowledgeable in the field with particular attention to obtaining viewpoints from around the world. We were also dedicated to ensuring that a range of voices were represented, including both established researchers and rising stars new to the field. Recognizing that multiple viewpoints strengthen our field, we are proud of the diverse range of authors that we have assembled. Each chapter has been reviewed by the editors as well as two independent reviewers in similar research areas to ensure the highest standards of peer review and further expand the range of views represented in this work.

This book is intended to serve multiple purposes. First and foremost, it is a primer for those interested in the application of biomaterials to the study of cancer. Rather than a collection of contributed papers, the book is written as a teaching resource and would be an appropriate reference or textbook supplement for an elective or graduate course on cancer bioengineering. This book also collates the latest advances in biomaterials for tumor microenvironment research in one place and would make an excellent reference for those in the field and those seeking to learn more about this dynamic research area. Thus, this book appeals to both the novice and expert reader. We hope that you enjoy reading this text as much as we enjoyed assembling it.

Jessica O. Winter

Shreyas Rao