Applications of Tumor Organoids in Head and Neck Diseases

Fangzheng Yi

doi:10.71321/gmh71395

Authors

Fangzheng Yi Institute of Pathology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.71321/gmh71395

Keywords:

Head and neck cancers, Patient-derived tumor organoids, Drug screening, Biomarker discovery, Regenerative medicine

Abstract

Head and neck cancers (HNC) constitute a highly heterogeneous group of malignancies with complex pathogenesis; effective clinical management remains challenging. Organoids, an emerging three-dimensional culture system, recapitulate key structural and functional features of the tissues of origin and offer distinctive advantages for studying head and neck cancer. Structured around four major head and neck cancer entities (head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, thyroid cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and malignant salivary gland tumors), this Review systematically outlines approaches for constructing head and neck cancer organoids, summarises common modelling methods and authentication strategies, and defines an integrated pipeline spanning acquisition, culture, validation and application. At the application level, we review five areas: basic tumor biology; drug screening and new drug development; immune-related studies; biobanking and biomarker discovery; and regenerative medicine with functional reconstruction. The goal is to inform subsequent research and clinical translation, and to highlight the broad prospects of this approach for addressing heterogeneity, therapy resistance and recurrence in head and neck cancer.

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